Mismatched Lovers
by tommygirl1115
Summary: 7th year at Hogwarts, Draco and Hermione are Head Boy and Girl. Sparks fly, passion rises, and jealousy lives. Romance, fluff, and suspense...R for language
1. The Heads of Hogwarts

Chapter One:

The Heads of Hogwarts

Hermione Granger yawned and rolled over on her bed. Her clock on the night table beside her read 10:30. It was the end of August, and the sun still shone brightly enough to wake her from her dreams. Her mother had obviously come in and opened up the shades so that Hermione wouldn't sleep too late. It was a habit of Hermione's to sleep as long as she possibly could during the summer. A warm breeze entered the room and danced through her brown hair; hair that was now sleek and straight. It fell to her shoulders, framing her face. The summer sun had brightened the sprinkling of freckles on her nose and cheeks, and had tanned her fair skin ever so slightly. With a sigh, she sat up and stretched. Her bare feet hit the wood floor as she made her way to the bathroom, grabbing clothes and her robe on the way. The steamy waters poured over her skin, and she closed her eyes in contentment. A song immediately entered her thoughts, and she hummed it, softly at first. After a few minutes, she had given up humming, and started singing like no one was listening. Of course it wouldn't have mattered to her if someone were. She wrung out her hair and wrapped it in a towel. When she was dressed and her hair was dried, she flounced down the stairs and sat down at the breakfast table. Her mother didn't look up from the eggs on the stove.

"Morning, Hermione. How do you want your eggs?"

"Sunny side up, please." Hermione grabbed the newspaper from the far side of the table and glanced at the headlines.

"You got mail, Hermione." Her father walked into the room, looking through a stack of envelopes. He slid it across the table to her, and she glanced at the envelope. Her name was engraved in scarlet letters, and the Hogwarts seal made her smile. She ripped open the letter and glanced at it. Her mouth dropped open.

Dear Hermione Granger:

We are pleased to inform you that you have been selected to fulfill the duties of Head Girl in your seventh year. Congratulations on this incredible achievement! Also, we are pleased to announce that since the defeat of Voldemort, and the impeachment of Cornelius Fudge, Albus Dumbledore has been nominated to take the position of Minister of Magic. In celebration of this, a masquerade ball is going to be held in place of the usual banquet. Masked attire is required. We look forward to seeing you again. Enjoy the rest of your summer holiday!

Sincerely,

Professor Minerva McGonagall

Headmistress

Hermione gasped. Then her heart soared with happiness and a sense of accomplishment.

"What does it say, Mya?" Her father watched his daughter's reaction. Hermione stood up and hugged both of her parents, squealing with excitement.

"I've been named Head Girl for school this year!" She exclaimed, breathlessly. Her mother set down a plate of eggs at the table and smiled at her daughter.

"That's wonderful, honey! We're so proud of you!"

"I need to go shopping for a masquerade costume, as well." Hermione called out as she rushed up the stairs to write to Harry and Ron. After she sent her barn owl, Cedar, flying into the cloudless sky, she returned to the kitchen to eat her breakfast. The eggs were cool, but it didn't bother Hermione. Nothing could this morning.

"Get up, Draco!" Narcissa called out in a shrill voice. Draco groaned and pulled his pillow over his head. Narcissa used her wand to lift the pillow out of her son's hands. Draco cursed under his breath and slid further under the covers. Narcissa was standing in the doorway, holding an unfolded piece of parchment.

"What was so important that you had to arouse me from sleep at this ungodly hour?" Draco muttered, rubbing his eyes. Narcissa glared at the pile of sheets in the large queen sized bed that was her son.

"You got a letter from Hogwarts this morning." This caught Draco's attention. He sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed.

"I see you've already read it." Draco looked pointedly at the unfolded paper. Narcissa ignored this comment and strode across the room.

"Put some clothes on and get downstairs. I'm taking you shopping." Draco froze in horror.

"Shopping?" He spit out the word as though it were poisoned. His mother merely sighed impatiently and left the room. Draco stared down at the parchment. His insides swelled with pride at the first sentence. _Head Boy...that would have pleased my father._ He read on about Dumbledore's nomination and the masquerade ball. He groaned. A masquerade ball? Reluctantly, he dressed and went downstairs. His mother was waiting for him in the foyer.

"Come on, Draco, we need to buy you a costume."

"I don't do costumes." Draco laughed shortly. His mother only frowned disapprovingly and took his arm.

"You're going to have to, Draco. It is important that Malfoy's always look good." Draco rolled his eyes as he leaned on the wall.

"That's stupid."

"Well, think about the bright side. You're Head Boy! Your father would be very pleased." Draco forced a smile. The death of his father was still a touchy spot of conversation, even though he had hated the man. His mother handed him his wand, and they both apparated to Knockturn Alley. His mother pulled him into a store he had never noticed before. It was filled with costumes and odd knick-knacks. His mother chatted with the storeowner, and Draco glanced around, hoping that no one he knew would see him. His mother's voice interrupted him.

"Come on, Draco. You need to be measured." Draco stared at his mother in horror.

"Measured? This has to be worse than being underdressed at a ball." An old man with gnarled hands gestured to a back room. Draco sighed and tried not to think of how degrading this was. The old man talked to himself about nonsense as he measured Draco's arms and legs. Then the man disappeared. When he reappeared, he was carrying three different parcels. All were large in size and heavy in weight. He winced as the man piled the packages in his arms.

"Come find me if they don't fit." He said in a raspy voice to Narcissa. She nodded and thanked the man.

"Well, Draco, let's go try these on." His mother pulled him into a changing room.

"Don't you think you've done enough?" Narcissa pursed her lips and took one of the bags from Draco.

"Open those two, Draco. The faster you do this, the faster we can leave." Draco rolled his eyes, but refrained from arguing. As soon as he saw the silver sequins on the costume, he pushed it away.

"Absolutely not! There is no way in hell a Malfoy would go this far to look good." Draco stared at the costume in disgust. His mother gathered it and held it up to him.

"I think it makes you look handsome."

"You're supposed to say that. You're my mother."

"I'm not lying to you because I'm your mother. Now at least try it on." Draco looked at his mother, attempting to stare her down. He ended up grabbing the bags from her and stalking into a changing stall. _Silver sequins? No way. _

The last thing Hermione packed into her trunk was her dress for the masquerade ball. It was positively beautiful, and it had taken her an entire week to find. She just hoped she hadn't gone overboard. The dress was red, sure to attract attention. It was floor length and made of several layers of heavy fabric, similar to dresses worn in the Middle Ages. The mask was gold with a long red feather, and adorned with sparkling rubies. She smiled as she reflected upon first seeing it. The red had caught her eye immediately, and when she saw the gold mask that went with it, she knew it was perfect. When she had tried it on and twirled around in circles, it swirled around her gracefully. The bodice fit snugly, and it had a low square cut top. The sleeves were long and the fabric fell down several inches away from her arm. The costume made her shiny, straight hair appear elegant. She took one last glance around her house, and then she got into her father's car. The houses and stores of London swept by in a blur as Hermione's parents drove her to the train station. After saying a brief good-bye, she passed through the wall to platform nine and three quarters. She spotted Harry and Ron immediately.

"Harry! Ron!" She called over to them, waving. They both looked at her, then exchanged puzzled glances. She rolled her eyes and walked over to them. "It's me you, gits!" Ron looked uncertain until he saw the books tucked under her arm and the gold Head Girl badge on her cloak.

"Hermione! You look..." Ron's eyes swept over her, making Hermione shift uncomfortably. "You look gorgeous." Hermione blushed furiously.

"Oh, Ron, stop it."

"No, he's right. You look absolutely beautiful!" Harry put in, glancing up and down her matured figure a few times. Hermione groaned. _Boys will be boys. _She picked up her trunk and lugged it to the train. After finding an empty compartment, she settled down to read the romance novel she had bought the day before. The title held intrigue (_Forbidden Desire) _for her, and the moment she read the summary, she knew she had to buy it. A more dangerous and passionate Romeo and Juliet. A tale of a man and woman, madly in love, and madly in denial. Knowing that a relationship between them would endanger their lives because of the man's father. The father, an abusive bastard, was against the woman so violently; it would mean death if he knew they were involved. The plot gave Hermione shivers, and she eagerly opened to the first page and began to read. Harry and Ron joined her, but didn't disturb her. She heard them only distantly, talking about Quidditch and such. The train lurched forward, jolting her back to reality. She marked her place and put the book away.

"So, how was your summer?" Hermione asked her friends. Both of them struggled to keep their eyes on her face as they stuttered and stumbled over their words.

"Well, uh-it was, uh, it was great. Yeah, a lot of fun." Hermione frowned at them.

"What is wrong with you two?" They stared back at her like they couldn't understand why she would even ask. "Forget it. I'm going to the bathroom. When I come back, you better have your hormones under control." She rolled her eyes and excused herself from the compartment. In the bathroom, she stared at her reflection. Her hair fell into her face, and she brushed it away from her amber eyes. _Why do boys have to be so obnoxious? _She sighed and left the bathroom. When she approached the compartment, she heard Ron's angry voice. She appeared in the door and stared at Ron, who was on the floor wearing a pink frilly dress. She choked back a laugh, and it came out sounding like a cough. Ron glared up at her.

"MALFOY, YOU'RE GOING TO SUFFER A FOUL AND UNDESIRABLE DEATH!" He bellowed. Hermione raised her wand and replaced the pink dress with Ron's clothes.

"Fine time to go to the bathroom, Hermione. We could have used you to curse that ferret into next week." Ron grumbled, resuming his seat. Hermione bit her lip to keep from smiling.

"You need the practice anyway. Apparently, you'll need a lot of it. Blocking a simple spell like that should have been easy." Hermione sat down and crossed her long, slim legs. Immediately she recognized it as a mistake. Two pairs of eyes went to her legs, and two mouths fell slightly open. Hermione picked up her wand.

"Occhinorum," She muttered.

"AUGH! I'VE GONE BLIND!" Ron exclaimed, waving his hand in front of his face.

"No, you prat. I've merely put a temporary spell on you both so you'll stop staring at me like I'm a monkey on display."

"You're sexier than a monkey." Ron muttered quietly. Hermione heard it nonetheless and blushed, thankful they couldn't notice.

"Aw, we were just being teenage boys, Hermione. There was nothing we could do to stop it." Harry blindly attempted to find a chocolate frog. He ended up instead grabbing the tail of a sleeping Crookshanks. The cat hissed and jumped down from the seat. Hermione knew that Harry was right, but she didn't want to return their vision just yet. It was entertaining enough to watch them flailing their arms about.

"True as that is, Harry, I just want you two to learn your lesson. A few more minutes in the dark should emphasize my point." Ron muttered something blasphemous under his breath, and Harry sighed, leaning back. Hermione returned to her reading, and would have forgotten Harry and Ron were still blind if Harry hadn't accidentally kicked her.

"Can we have our vision back yet?" Ron asked quickly when Hermione gasped from Harry's foot connecting with her shin. She rolled her eyes, but decided it would be best for everyone's health if they could see. A flick of her wand and a mutter of a counter curse, and Harry and Ron could see. They both blinked a few times, getting used to the light again.

"That's better. Sometimes I wish we were friends with Lavender. That girl can't even lift a wand." Ron grumbled. A romance between Lavender and Ron had gone sour, and he was still sore from it, apparently. Nevertheless, his comment had been correct. Lavender rarely picked up her wand outside of classes for fear she'd ruin her latest manicure, or some other preposterous reason such as that. Arousing laughter from Hermione and Harry seemed to help Ron forget the painful memories of Lavender.

"So, Head Girl, Hermione?" Harry grinned at her. "Who could have predicted that?"

"Everyone knew the minute we got to Hogwarts." Ron put in. Hermione blushed.

"There were plenty of other girls who could have filled this position."

"But you are the lucky girl who actually gets the position. Everyone knew you would." Hermione racked her brain, trying to think of something else to talk about so that she would stop blushing so much.

"So how about this masquerade ball? Did you two find costumes?" Ron narrowed his eyes and groaned out loud.

"Mum picked out the stupidest costume I have ever laid eyes upon. There were plenty of decent costumes, why in hell did she have to choose the one with "salmon" colored sequins?"

"Salmon...do mean to say that your costume is pink?" Hermione bit her lip in a sorry attempt to keep a straight face.

"I was showing it to Harry when Malfoy came in here. He seemed to think it was incredibly hilarious. Decided to make a little joke out of it, too."

"Well it can't be that bad, right?" Hermione glanced at Harry, who shook his head sadly. Ron slumped down in his seat.

"Maybe I can transfer to Beauxbatons."

"So what about you, Harry? Did you find a costume?"

"Yeah. It's dark blue and stuff. You'll have to wait and see it, because I can't describe it that well." Hermione smiled.

"You two are going to look so funny in costumes."

"Well what about you? What's your costume?" Ron demanded.

"It's a surprise."

Draco's cheeks were still slightly flushed from laughing so hard at Ron Weasley. The image of the red-haired boy in a frilly pink dress was hilarious. Draco's train compartment was empty; Crabbe and Goyle had gone to raid the snack trolley. Without moving his head, he shifted his eyes to look up at the sky through the window. The sun was sinking slowly, casting an orange hue across the grasslands and fields. Wisps of clouds tarnished the clear, blue sky, changing forms in the breeze. In the calmness of the moment, the image of Weasley in a pink dress came to mind once again. He almost laughed out loud at the thought. He wasn't sure if it was good or bad that Granger hadn't been in the compartment when he chose to enter. He could have had a good time cursing her into something that would actually shut up. Then again, she could whip his arse in a matter of seconds. Come to think of it, he hadn't seen Granger at all. Maybe she transferred schools or something. His spirits lifted a bit, and then they fell when Pansy Parkinson poked her head into the compartment. Draco realized that she would find the way he was sitting, rather lying, very suggestive. His hand propped up his head, and his body was sprawled out over the seats. He sat up very quickly as she entered.

"Hello Draco. I missed you over the summer." She purred. Draco winced as she sat down next to him. "I heard you've been named Head Boy." She fingered the gold badge on his cloak. Draco refused to reply. He did the best he could to keep his eyes void of emotion. Pansy pretended not to notice, and she continued.

"I wanted to congratulate you." Her face was so close to his, he could feel her warm breath on his neck. He stood up abruptly as Pansy leaned in for the kiss.

"Thank you, Pansy. It really is a great honor." He tried to sound bored, hoping she back down. Instead, this seemed to make her more determined to have him. She rose to her feet, and Draco felt suddenly trapped by her large body. Having nowhere else to go, he backed up to the wall. She advanced, ever so slowly, and it would have been arousing if it wasn't Pansy performing the action. Draco thanked whoever it was who had opened the compartment door at that moment. Pansy froze upon seeing Professor McGonagall.

"Sorry to interrupt, but might I have a word with Mister Malfoy, Miss Parkinson?" Pansy nodded and scurried away. Draco fought the temptation to hug McGonagall. Instead, he extended his hand.

"Good to see you, Professor McGonagall. What can I do for you?" He addressed her politely, which seemed to shock her for a moment.

"Well, Mister Malfoy, as you obviously know, you have been chosen as Head Boy. The first official Head Boy duty will be to attend to compartments one through one hundred nine. You will inform the students that they are to be dressed for the masquerade ball when they leave the train. They will report to the Great Hall as usual for the sorting process. After the sorting, the ball will officially begin. Be sure to tell them all of that."

"Yes, professor."

"The Head Girl is taking care of the rest of the compartments. Have a pleasant trip, Mister Malfoy." McGonagall turned to leave.

"Professor McGonagall!" She turned to look at him. "Who is the Head Girl?" A twinkle in her eyes made him nervous.

"You'll have to wait and find out for yourself, Mister Malfoy." A small smile crossed her face, and she left. Draco was alone in the compartment, left to mull over the possible candidates for Head Girl. Obviously, Granger was in the running, then again, she may have transferred. Draco dismissed that thought, knowing that the odds of her transferring were incredibly slim. His thoughts wandered to the masquerade ball. Dear lord, he'd actually have to wear that abomination of a costume. Silver sequins...they haunted him in his dreams. The costume was supposed to be some sort of white knight. Tons of fabric weighed him down, but the only part of the costume he found rather amusing was the hat. Old fashioned and pure white with a long white feather. The feather was what caused a smile to prick at the corners of his mouth. It was extremely long, and would probably poke anyone who came within a foot of him. It was big and fluffy, and could be used as an instrument of tickle torture. The mask was a simple silver face. No intricate designs or sequins...just the way he preferred it. A week ago, he was telling his mother he wouldn't be caught dead in the costume, but now, he figured it wouldn't be so bad. As long as no one knew it was him, it would be fine. He'd just keep his mask up the entire night, and not reveal his identity to anyone. He snorted, knowing that he could only keep that charade up for an hour, maybe less. Then a smirk played across his lips. At least people will be too busy laughing at Weasley to even notice he existed. With a sigh, he exited the compartment and walked down the corridors to the first compartment. He knocked politely before sticking his head in to tell the passengers about the costumes. He had gone ten compartments and discovered that this job was much more tedious than he would have liked. Some of the students questioned his authority and honesty.

"Why should we believe you?" An especially cheeky Ravenclaw boy demanded. Draco narrowed his eyes, bothered by the defiance.

"Because I am Head Boy." The boy was still not convinced.

"And my name is Professor Dumbledore, nice to meet you." Draco's temper flared.

"Listen here, you little third year twerp! If you're not in your costume when this train stops, you're going to have a nasty Gryffindor teacher up your arse. Think about it." Draco left the compartment, both laughing to himself and fuming at the same time. How dare a third year shrimp like him defy a full-grown seventh year Slytherin. He'll learn. At compartment eighty-seven, Draco froze. It was Pansy's compartment. Once he opened the door, he was dragged inside. Pansy flung him onto the seat and tried to kiss him. He moved his head just in time and wriggled out of her grasp. Her eyes were filled with wanting, and Draco actually started to get nervous. She lunged at him, and he ducked. She fell in heap to the ground. Draco stood over her and recited the speech he had given eighty-six compartments before this one. Then he left her there on the floor. At compartment one hundred nine, he gave his talk and walked out. He leaned against the wall and sighed. Head Boy was already proving to be a strenuous position. A flash of white to his left made him turn his head. A girl was walking down the corridor. A girl he didn't recognize. Her brown hair fell in a graceful sheet to meet her shoulders. Her white dress didn't quite reach her knees, revealing a good portion of her long, slender legs. Draco felt his mouth begin to water unintentionally. She was too far away for him to call after her, so he took one last sweeping glance up and down her body and left for his compartment. Crabbe and Goyle were stuffing their faces when Draco returned. They didn't even glance up when he entered. Draco sat down and began to think of who that girl was and why he hadn't noticed her before. She was probably a seventh year, either that or a very tall sixth year. And those legs...damn. Long, slender, shapely. Just the thought of her heated his blood. It was driving him insane trying to figure out her identity and the occasional dumb chortles from his companions made him even more frustrated. The massive train began to slow down, and Draco rose to his feet.

"I'm going to change into my costume. Don't blow anything up while I'm gone." Draco spoke to his friends as though they were small children. They were too dumb to realize they were being spoken down to. Inside the bathroom, Draco dressed in his costume. The fabric seemed just as heavy as it did when he had tried it on, and if it was possible, it seemed even heavier. He finished getting ready by putting on the hat he found so much amusement in. He tipped it down in the front slightly before leaving. He reentered his compartment to find it empty. Figuring that they must have gotten lost somewhere, Draco sprawled himself out on the seats to enjoy the rest of the trip. Fortunately, the image of the girl in the white dress came back into his mind. He closed his eyes, welcoming her into his thoughts, but opened them quickly when he realized something. She's going to be at the masquerade. A slow, deliberate smile dragged across his face.


	2. Paper Faces on Parade

Chapter Two:

Paper Faces on Parade

Harry and Ron fought to contain themselves when Hermione emerged from the bathroom. They both made special efforts to keep their mouths shut and their eyes normal.

"What do you think?" Hermione spun in a circle, the fabric swishing about her figure. Both boys stuttered and stammered, awkwardly. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Forget I asked. Go get changed. We're almost at Hogwarts." The boys silently exited the room. Hermione sighed, happily, remembering how much she loved this costume. She twirled around a few more times, enjoying the layers of fabric spinning with her. When Ron entered the compartment, followed by Harry, Hermione had to cough loudly so as not to laugh. Ron's costume was a salmon. The pinkish sequins made up the fish scale pattern, and the mask was a vibrant coral.

"Don't...say...a word." Ron hissed as he sat down. Harry snorted in an attempt to hide a laugh. Hermione directed her attention to the Boy Who Lived. His costume was less humiliating. The midnight blue robes swept to the floor, and the mask held several sapphire feathers. Hermione giggled.

"You two look so adorable," She sat down between her best friends. Ron, who had been grumbling curses under his breath, paused as her arms went around their shoulders.

"You don't look so bad yourself, you know." Ron's eyes swept over her, quickly, hoping she wouldn't notice. But she did.

"Don't make me blind you again, Ronald Weasley." She lifted her arms from around their shoulders and rose to her feet. "If you two are good for the next few hours, I promise you both a dance." Harry and Ron both swore to keep their hormones at ease. The train lurched to a stop, propelling Hermione into Harry's lap. He caught her, clumsily, and just stared down at her, not sure of what to do next. When the train had come to a full and complete stop, Hermione took it upon herself to stand up.

"Come on." She pulled both of the boys to their feet and dragged them out into the corridors, which were rapidly filling with students in costumes. Excited giggles and chatter filled the air, and soon, Hermione's heart was beating faster with anticipation. The carriage ride to the castle was silent. The moonlight streamed in through the window of the horseless buggy, casting an eerie shadow upon them all. They soon came to a halt, and students poured out and entered the familiar halls of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

"I wonder who the Head Boy is." Hermione murmured aloud as they walked past the portraits of the Head Girl and Boy from last year.

"Bet you anything it's Malfoy. That slimy git's father has enough influence over what happens at this school, making sure Malfoy was Head Boy was probably no problem." Ron muttered, murderously. Hermione was barely listening. Her eyes kept floating about the crowded halls and sweeping over the various colors and costumes of the different students. The Great Hall was decorated nicer than Hermione could remember. The first year students were all huddled nervously in one corner at the front of the room. Their costumes were all simple and colorful. Hermione thought they all looked adorable. After assuming their seats at the Gryffindor table, Hermione, Harry, and Ron began to converse with the rest of the Gryffindors. Hermione and Ginny hugged in greeting.

"Hermione, you look amazing!"

"Oh thanks Ginny. Believe it or not, your brother was practically drooling the entire train ride up."

"Is that so? I'll have to have a word with him."

"You look great too, Ginny. That sky blue looks really pretty on you."

"Thanks, Hermione. Ron thought it was too fancy."

"Well Ron looks like a fruit, so don't listen to anything he says." Ginny laughed and Hermione joined in. Ron glared at the two girls, knowing that they had been talking about him. Harry attempted to cheer Ron up by pointing out a Ravenclaw boy wearing a purple costume. It did not appear to work.

"So, Ginny, when are you going to ask Harry out?" Hermione smiled at Ginny. The red head blushed deeply.

"Not so loud!" Hermione laughed and continued in a soft voice.

"He fancies you, you know. He's been talking about you a lot."

"Really?" Ginny's eyes sparkled, hopefully.

"Honest." Hermione glanced over at Harry, who was eyeing her suspiciously. A blonde haired girl from Hufflepuff came over to Ginny.

"I saw him again Ginny! I passed him in the corridor!" Hermione raised an eyebrow.

"Who?" Ginny smiled.

"We don't know! But he's positively gorgeous and he's in all white and silver." Hermione glanced around the Great Hall, not seeing anyone in pure white.

"He even glanced at me for a second! I thought I was going to die!" The girl continued with excitement. Hermione tried not to roll her eyes. She had never been one of those girls who spent their time mooning over guys. She would rather curl up somewhere with a book. Even so, she felt different this year...like she could finally relax. Possessed by this new sense of serenity, she took another glance around the hall, searching for the boy Ginny had described. She turned back around, disappointed, but decided to find him later at the ball.

"If I might have your attention?" Dumbledore rose from his seat and proclaimed. The Hall grew silent. "Once the Sorting has been completed and the food has been served, the masquerade ball will officially begin. With no further ado, Professor McGonagall, would you proceed with the sorting process?" As the first years were sorted into the houses, Hermione glanced about the Hall, looking for possible Head Boys. _Justin Finch-Fletchly, perhaps. Maybe even Terry Boot. He was smart enough the past few years. _Before she knew it, the food appeared on the table before her. Ron immediately began to dig in, shoveling food onto his plate. Harry glanced at the gray mush on Ron's plate.

"What is that?"

"Dunno." He took a finger full and stuck it in his mouth. "It's good, though." Hermione daintily piled some food onto her plate, feeling the odd sensation that someone was watching her. She chose to ignore it as she continued to eat. Ginny was chatting excitedly with Parvati about the mysterious man in silver and white. Harry and Ron were arguing over something about Quidditch. Hermione sighed, deciding not to get involved with any of the conversations around her. Instead, she allowed her mind to wander to her book. She put herself in the place of the girl in her story, and tried to imagine what it was like. She was shaken from her daydream by Ginny pulling on her arm.

"Come on, Hermione! Let's find someone to dance with!" Hermione blinked. The plates had all been cleared, and music was starting to fill the room. Smiling, Hermione stood up and allowed Ginny to pull her into the crowds of people. A timid Neville Longbottom approached her.

"Uh, Hermione?"

"Yes, Neville?" Hermione smiled at him. She knew what he wanted, but part of being a girl is knowing how to tease.

"Would you, um, would you like to, uh, dance?" He finally asked, his face beet red.

"Certainly, Neville. I'd love to dance with you."

"Really?" Neville looked as though he were about to pass out. Hermione took his hand, charmed her mask to cover her face, and began to dance. Neville followed her moves awkwardly, and Hermione was proud that he only stepped on her toes twice. The song ended, and Hermione felt a tap on her shoulder. Harry stood there, grinning and holding out his hand.

"You promised."

Draco scanned the Great Hall. The ball had begun, and the floors were flooded with color. One color in particular stood out more so than the others. A bright crimson red with an intricate design in gold. He recognized the sleek brown hair that just reached her shoulders. It was the nameless girl in white he'd seen earlier. He watched her twirl around the dance floor with that incommodious clod, Neville Longbottom. She was far too graceful for the likes of him. The song ended, and Draco took a few steps in her direction. He paused when Harry Potter approached her, holding out his hand. Draco fumed as the girl placed her own graceful hand in Potter's clumsy one. It was easy to see that Potter had no experience in ballroom dancing. Draco had been to his share of important events alongside his father. He had been required to dance with some girls every so often, so his mother had insisted upon having him take lessons. Draco shuddered. It was one of the more degrading moments of his life. Coming in at a close second was wearing this stupid costume in public. He was careful to keep his face hidden by the mask, and when he got tired of peering through the eye holes in the mask, he tipped his hat down far enough so it cast a shadow over his features. He looked on in envy as Potter spun the girl around the room. They were talking and laughing, or so it appeared, as though they had been friends for years. If they had, then why hadn't Draco noticed before? It seemed like it had been forever when the song finally ended. With no one advancing on the crimson lady, he strolled towards her. He felt his heart racing as he took hold of her arm. She turned around to face him, and he was sure he heard a breath catch in her throat.

"So you're the man in silver and white." She smiled, sweetly. Draco raised an eyebrow. He definitely liked her smile.

"Is that what they're calling me?"

"You seem to be the talk of female conversation."

"Your female conversation?"

"Perhaps. Are you going to dance with me or not?" Draco grinned at her demand. Normally, he wouldn't let a girl order him around. He made exceptions for beautiful ones.

"First tell me your name, m'lady."

"I like that title better than the name I have."

"I'd still like to know your real name."

"The point of a masquerade ball is that you don't know whom you're dancing with. I don't know who you are, so it is only fair that you don't know who I am." Draco sensed defeat, so he extended his hand.

"Might I have this dance, my lady?" She accepted, and Draco silently cheered himself on. His arm slipped around her small waist and her slender fingers intertwined with his.

"I like your hat." Draco grinned. He knew this ridiculous hat would come in handy for something.

"You're not ticklish, are you? This feather has more uses than decorative purposes."

"You wouldn't dare." He made sure she could see clearly into his eyes when he replied.

"Are you sure about that?" He twirled her in a circle and pulled her back, pressing her tiny figure against his broad self. He inhaled her sweet perfume and felt her heart beating in the quickened rhythm along with his own. They both stood there for a moment, not sure whether to pull away or to remain. He finally spun her away from him, flustered by his hesitation to make a move on her. There was something so familiar about her, it intrigued him, as well as made him nervous. There was something so oddly comfortable about the way she fit in his embrace, as though they were meant for each other all along. When the song ended, he lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it, softly.

"Might I have another dance later on?" Draco held his breath, waiting for her response. She smiled, sweetly, and he was quickly captivated. Her amber eyes sparkled behind her mask.

"You may have another dance now." Draco grinned and replaced his hand on the small of her back. He was sweating slightly from dancing in the yards of heavy fabric. His mask stayed in place the entire evening, and he noticed her own mask never left her face. He found it somewhat odd, but rather intriguing.

"So m' lady, are you a Gryffindor, or does your costume just happen to be red and gold?" He asked, conversationally.

"I am a Gryffindor. Seventh year." Draco cursed in his mind. A Slytherin dating a Gryffindor wouldn't go over very well with some of his fellow Slytherins. Yes, he was already thinking about dating. But she was a seventh year...making her more accessible.

"I'm a Slytherin. Seventh year also."

"So we're breaking some sort of unwritten rule by dancing with one another, aren't we? I doubt very much my fellow Gryffindors would appreciate my dancing with a Slytherin."

"The same goes here. The rest of the Slytherins would probably excommunicate me." The girl laughed, and Draco felt his heart race. Her laughter was beautiful. It rang out clear and full of happiness and amusement.

"All the more reason to hide our identities, I suppose." She giggled. Suddenly a large pink object bumped, clumsily, into the swift pair. Draco glared at Ron Weasley.

"Sorry. Cutting in. You promised me a dance." Ron spoke to the girl, not even glancing at Draco.

"Excuse me, sir. Come find me later. You were an excellent dance partner." The girl smiled at Draco, erasing all of the murderous thoughts flowing through Draco's mind. With that, Weasley ushered the beautiful girl away.

"Drakie! There you are! Dance with me!" Pansy's voice came from right behind him.

"You know I hate it when you call me that, Pansy." Draco didn't turn around to face her, knowing that when he did, it would be a night of never ending dancing with Pansy. And he wanted another dance with that girl. That girl who could captivate his thoughts with a mere smile. That girl who's laughter calmed and soothed him, relieving him of any unpleasant thoughts. That girl who seemed so familiar...yet how could he have known such a beautiful girl for so long without noticing?

"Dance with me, Draco!" Pansy tugged on his arm, wrenching Draco from his fantasies about the mysterious girl. Draco rolled his eyes and turned to her.

"One dance, Pansy. One. Not ten, one." Draco spoke slowly and deliberately so she couldn't deny hearing him. Her face fell with disappointment, but she nodded reluctantly. Dancing with Pansy was like trying to dance with an elephant. There was just no graceful way of going about it. She stepped on his feet three times, and Draco was sure he heard a crack the third time. His foot throbbed painfully when he finally limped off to the sidelines. He got himself some pumpkin juice and sat down, massaging his foot. He peeled his mask away from his face, relieved that he had found a charm to hold it in place, and adjusted his hat so that a shadow was cast over his features. His head snapped up when he heard a loud, shrill voice. He was in time to see his lovely lioness leaving the Great Hall as quickly as she could. Draco narrowed his eyes at her last dance partner. A Slytherin Draco hadn't really taken the time to know. There was a red mark on the Slytherin's cheek. He slapped his mask to his face and strolled nonchalantly over to the Slytherin.

"You there! What's your name?" Draco demanded of the boy. The boy stared at Draco with a smirk on his lips.

"Blaise Zabini...and who might you be?" Draco narrowed his eyes at the defiance in Zabini's tone.

"Never mind. What did you do to that girl?" Zabini shrugged his shoulders easily.

"Nothing she didn't want."

"I'm sure. That's why she slapped you, correct?" The smirk left Zabini's face.

"The bitch slapped me for no legitimate reason. It's a damn shame I didn't catch her name, of course it's lucky for her." Draco lost his temper. He grabbed the collar of Zabini's robes and stared at the poor excuse of a Slytherin.

"Don't ever disrespect a girl like that again." Draco left the hall in search of the girl.

Hermione kicked a rock into the lake. It landed with a satisfying plunk, and sank. Something in the lake stirred, but she didn't even take notice. It was a fairly cool September night, and the cool breeze blew her hair into her face. She brushed it away and kicked another rock into the lake.

"Prick." She muttered under her breath. The many disadvantages of growing into a beautiful young woman...men can't control themselves. Except for that man in silver. No, he had managed to remain decent through a dance. Even Harry and Ron had glanced up and down her figure a few times. But that last dance partner was simply out of control. Eyeing her like she was some sex toy on display. When his hands had moved up and down her body, she had drawn the line. He deserved that slap across the face. She wished the mask she had pulled off her face and was holding down at her side was her wand. She would have shown that inconsiderate, adolescent creep a thing or two. A shadow appeared on the ground to her left, and she froze. Mask to her face, she whipped around to see who it was. She let out the breath she had been holding in when she saw the mysterious silver knight standing there. The sequins on the costume twinkled like the millions of stars above, but Hermione was mainly concentrating on the eyes behind the mask. They seemed to read deep into her soul, which frightened and excited her at the same time. The gray blue color was gorgeous to Hermione, and when she looked at him, she found it difficult to look away. Had this Slytherin been going to this school all along? If he had, then how had he slipped by unnoticed? He took a few steps toward her, and Hermione felt her heart race wildly.

"Not the most charming man, is he?" The silver knight asked in a low voice.

"What is wrong with me? What is it about me that makes men turn into jerks?" She stopped, realizing how dumb that question was. She was about to tell him not to answer those, when he spoke.

"It's not your fault you're beautiful. It's their fault for not being able to control themselves." The silver knight sat down on the stone bench overlooking the lake. The moon disappeared behind a dark cloud, dousing the little light there had been. She found the bench and sat down next to the mystery man.

"Who are you?" Hermione's voice came out as a whisper. In the dark, she sensed him turn to face her.

"You want to spoil the fun?" His breath was warm on her face, and Hermione was sure he could hear her heart beating.

"Yes...I mean no, I mean-" She stammered. A soft finger brushed against her cheek sending shivers of excitement down her spine. She felt his hand cover hers, as his other hand rested gently on her neck. She felt him shift, leaning closer to her.

"Would you hate me so terribly if I kissed you, m' lady?" His voice was so low, Hermione could barely hear it. She shook her head, almost begging him to kiss her immediately. Her mask left her face and fell down at her side, and she tried to get a better look at the silver knight. But the moon was gone, and she couldn't see his features. Her forehead hit the brim of his hat when he leaned in, and they both laughed softly. Hermione carefully lifted the hat allowing his lips to brush against hers in a shy kiss. Electrified by the contact, Hermione shuddered and moved even closer to his body. His arm went around her back and he kissed her again, less intuitive this time. The blood rushed through her veins furiously as he deepened their kiss. The passion burning inside of her grew steadily. A sudden loud bang caused the two to spring away from each other, surprised and confused. Hermione recognized Harry and Ron's silhouettes in the doorway to the castle.

"There you are! We've been looking everywhere for you!" Harry called. Then he eyed the silver figure next to her suspiciously. Hermione interrupted Harry before he could inquire.

"I'll be in soon, Harry. If you have some punch waiting for me when I get back, I'll give you another dance." Harry nodded reluctantly, and dragged Ron with him back inside. Once again plunged into darkness, Hermione sighed. The silver knight beside her stood up.

"I suppose this is good night then." He spoke in a husky voice.

"No, the masquerade ball isn't over for another hour."

"I am going to retire early." Hermione's heart sank. She stood up and touched his arm. Her left hand was still holding his hat.

"Will I see you during classes?"

"Yes." There was a pause.

"Who are you?" She asked for the second time. The knight sighed.

"The one you least expected." He walked away, but paused at the door. "Keep the hat. It will be the only reminder you'll have of this silver knight." The door opened and he disappeared. It shut with an empty slam. Hermione sank onto the bench. What was that supposed to mean? She wondered. She was so caught up in thinking about her silver knight, she went right up to the Gryffindor common rooms and collapsed onto her bed. She played with the feather on the white hat, unconsciously. As hard as she tried to fall asleep, her mind was too full. The aftershock of the kisses they shared still existed inside of her. When the rest of the girls in her dormitory filed in from the masquerade, Hermione pretended to be sleeping. She listened to Lavender and Parvati talking about Seamus. They giggled and whispered, thinking that they were being considerate to the 'sleeping' Hermione. Truthfully, if Hermione had been asleep, she certainly would have woken up. Ginny was voicing her concerns about Hermione.

"Harry was worried to death about her! He said he saw her sitting outside with that gorgeous guy in white. Anyway, he said that she was supposed to come in and dance with him one more time." Hermione cursed silently. Poor Harry. She made a mental note to remember to apologize profusely the next morning.

"Hermione was with that guy? Good God! He was so breathtaking!" Parvati squealed. Lavender was agreeing with Parvati, but Hermione wasn't listening anymore. Her thoughts once again wandered to her white knight. He had been the nicest, most handsome, considerate boy she had met at Hogwarts this year. Now she'd probably never see him again...or would she? He had told her that she would see him in classes, but from the way he put it, she wouldn't be seeing the same person.

Hermione awoke early the next morning. She glanced out the window to see the sun just beginning to peak over the horizon. Everyone else was still sleeping, so she got up as quietly as she could manage and left the dorms. The common room was empty, as she had imagined. The fire was blazing as always. Still in her long white nightgown, Hermione exited the common room and left the Gryffindor tower. Her bare feet made little noise as she walked down the stone-floored halls. Opening the tall oak doors to the outdoors quietly proved to be difficult, but she managed. The sun had risen just a little more in the sky, casting a pinkish coloring on the sky. A few stars still twinkled here and there, but were beginning to fade as daylight came. The grass was wet with dew under her feet, but she barely noticed or cared. The lake was deathly still with an eerie mist forming just above the surface. Hermione's eyes lingered on the stone bench where she and her silver knight had sat the night before. She lowered herself onto the bench to watch the sunrise. The colors in the sky began to vary, and the last star had disappeared from sight. A bright red cardinal flew overhead, stretching its elegant wings in graceful strokes. Hermione sighed. _I should do this more often. _As the last fraction of the sun rose above the horizon, she reluctantly walked back to the castle doors. She didn't want anyone to know that she had gone. Harry and Ron were already worried about her, and she didn't want to have to explain something else. Little did she know, she was being watched. By the person she least expected.


	3. Unmasked

Chapter Three:

Unmasked

Draco watched her sit on the stone bench and stare at the sun as it rose. She looked so different, so beautiful...-

"Stop! Stop! Stop! She's a damn mudblood!" Draco chided himself in a whisper. His verbal rationalizations seemed to help. As he continued to stare at her sitting there, he made a list of reasons why he had kissed her the night before. He had been completely unaware of who she was last night. Thinking about it now, he wondered why he hadn't seen it before. Then again, he could also understand why he hadn't seen it. This girl didn't look like Hermione Granger at all. No more frizzy hair or flat chest. Her face hadn't been hidden in a book the entire night, and her voice was silky smooth. More seductive than Draco remembered. When Harry and Ron had crashed out the castle doors the night before, Draco had caught a glimpse of her face. Although barely recognizable, she was undoubtedly Hermione Granger...and he had kissed her. He, Draco Malfoy, had kissed her, Hermione Granger. It was definitely a mistake. Given the situation over again, he wouldn't have allowed her a minute of his time. When he had first realized who she was, his first reaction was 'who knew she kissed so well?'. Then his next reaction was 'wait...this is Hermione Granger. The mudblood.' and the realization scared the shit out of him. He made his escape although he was almost reluctant to do so. Now he comforted himself by saying that his hormones were out of control or something like that. There was no way he would have wanted to stay there, alone, with Hermione Mudblood Granger if it were a mind matter. But hormones kicked in for a moment. Now she would find out who she was with last night, and she'd probably freak. He had. But no matter what he told himself in his head, he could not deny that she was beautiful. She had been under his nose all along, and he had never seen her so vividly as he had last night. He sighed as she walked back towards the castle, glancing over her shoulder ever so often. He forced himself away from the window and flung himself down, harshly, on the couch in front of the fireplace. He willed himself to think about something else...anything else. There was a new Slytherin girl this year. Evelyn Channings. Draco had seen her talking with Professor Snape at the masquerade. She was tall and thin with hair red enough to give the Weasley's a run for their money. Wait...what money? Draco chuckled softly at this thought. When the Weasley's had money, that's when he would even be the slightest bit interested in Hermione Granger. _Shit, how did I get back to thinking about her? _Draco smacked his forehead and shook his head vigorously, trying to rid his mind of the thoughts. Evelyn was very pretty with violet eyes as deep as Loch ness. Suddenly an owl flew in through the open window, almost beaming Draco in the head. He glared at the jittery bird and snatched the parchment.

Dear Draco Malfoy,

Please report to my office this morning after breakfast. You will be shown to your Head dormitories, and will be acquainted with the Head Girl. Enjoy your breakfast.

Sincerely,

Albus Dumbledore

Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Grinning, Draco dropped the letter onto his desk. He'd finally be getting out of the Slytherin dormitory. It was a general stereotype of Slytherin males to be heartbreakers. And he, himself, was the king of all Slytherin heartbreakers. Therefore, the Slytherin dormitory was always bustling with girls from various houses coming and going at all hours of the night. When his roommates had girls over at nights, Draco slept on the couch in the common room. It was just sick to stay in the room. He wouldn't get any sleep there anyway. Apparently he was sharing the Head dormitory with the Head Girl. It could definitely work to his advantage if the Head Girl happened to be gorgeous. He started sorting out possible applicants. His thoughts settled on the most likely candidate. Granger. He groaned and ran his hands through his hair. She wasn't leaving him alone. Following him around like a plague. There was always a chance that she wasn't Head Girl, but Draco knew the odds of that. She was, by far, the most intelligent girl in the seventh year. She had always been the smartest girl since year one. It was common knowledge. He cringed slightly at the thought of sharing a dormitory with her. She'd probably nag him all the time for being messy or not doing his homework right away. Soon, other Slytherins began waking and heading down to the Great Hall for breakfast. Eager to finish breakfast so he could meet the Head Girl, Draco made his way to the hall. He scanned the various house tables, looking for options besides Granger. But suddenly, silver met amber, and the gazes locked. He watched the slow realization seep into her mind, and her eyes widened just a bit. Then she broke their stare, and appeared to be trying to occupy herself by moving her food around her plate. Draco got enjoyment out of watching her squirm. He began to think of more ways to make her even more uncomfortable. He could partner up with her in classes. Appear out of no where when she was studying alone in the library. His evil schemes were interrupted by Pansy.

"Morning, Draco! How are you?"

"Peachy. I've got to go. Meeting with Dumbledore." He excused himself quickly, deciding that he wanted to be the first one in Dumbledore's office so he could see the Head Girl enter. Besides, it gave him a reason to leave Pansy. As he walked out, he shot one more glance at the Gryffindor table. She was gone. Heading up the staircases to the statue of the gargoyle, he tried not to think about Granger, and the possibility of her being Head Girl. Not knowing the password, Draco leaned against the wall, waiting for a teacher to come by and let him in. Eventually, the gargoyle sprang aside and Dumbledore strolled out.

"Ah, Draco! Good morning. Follow me. The Head Girl is already unpacking her things in your new living quarters." Hiding his disappointment, Draco nodded and followed Dumbledore down a hallway he had never really seen before. In front of a portrait of a knight embracing a princess, Dumbledore paused and turned to Draco.

"The password is diamond dust. Your things are already inside, but you might want to arrange them yourself."

"Thank you, professor." Dumbledore smiled and left Draco standing in front of the portrait. The knight stared down at him, impatiently.

"Well, are you going to go inside?"

"Oh good. I thought I was going to have a crabby painting to deal with." Draco remarked sarcastically. The princess smothered a giggle, and the knight glared down at him.

"Say the password and leave us."

"Diamond dust." Draco rolled his eyes. The portrait swung open and Draco walked hurriedly inside. Looking around the common room, Draco missed the girl standing in the doorway of her bedroom. Tall floor to ceiling Monticello windows lined the walls, allowing sunlight to stream through. They provided a beautiful view of the lake and the Forbidden Forest. The furniture was upholstered in red, gold, silver, and green. If the school was trying to push for house unity, they had a funny way of proceeding. A tall fireplace stood against a wall and a warm fire crackled inside it. There was a long wooden table with several chairs for studying or eating. A crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling, casting a warm glow on the room. The Head Girl had already dumped some of her books out onto one end of the table. Draco fixed on the door that led to the bathroom. Sharing a bathroom with a girl would definitely be a problem for him. He shifted his eyes to the door on the right of the bathroom. Engraved in gold letters were the words _Draco Malfoy, Head Boy_. Almost tentatively, Draco let his eyes wander to the door on the right of the bathroom. His heart did a funny flip. It tried to sink and soar in the same moment. Not allowing his conflict to affect his stance, he smirked at the Head Girl. Hermione Granger.

She watched him as he entered the dormitory. Yes, he was taller, more muscular, extremely attractive, and had kissed her the night before, but he was still Malfoy. _Once a Malfoy, always a Malfoy._ Hermione told herself as he opened his mouth to speak.

"Granger...I think you're lost. This is the Head Boy and Girl dormitory." He flopped down on couch as though he owned the place. He stretched out on it and ran a hand through his silky blonde hair.

"Very witty, Malfoy. How long were you working on that one?" Hermione retorted, digging through her backpack to find her novel she was reading. Malfoy seemed to have chosen to ignore her, because he did not reply. Hermione was grateful for this. She didn't feel like wasting her time fighting with the stupid prat. As far as she was concerned, their kiss had never happened. It was a mistake, and mistakes should be forgotten. He wasn't worth a minute of her time. Besides, she wanted to be able to concentrate on her novel. She took a seat in one of the armchairs, and glanced at Malfoy, daring him to speak again. When he didn't, she returned to her book. Unfortunately, just as she opened to where she had left off, Malfoy spoke again.

"Still reading, Granger? Tell me, does it ever end?" He eyed her book in what looked like disgust. She was almost horrified to see someone react in such a way to her book, which happened to be an amazing piece of literature.

"How you managed to become Head Boy, I cannot fathom. Did daddy threaten a few people?" She asked in a cold voice. Draco's eyes went dark.

"Shut up." He demanded harshly. Hermione smothered a gasp as she realized why her comment had affected him so. Lucius had died while in Azkaban. Something spilled through Hermione making her feel horribly. _I'm feeling guilty about something I said to Malfoy?_ It didn't make sense. Neither of them felt any guilt about being cruel to the other. They had to be apathetic when it came to insults. The exception came now.

"I'm sorry. I didn't realize what I was saying." Hermione tried to redeem herself, but ended up trailing off when she realized she couldn't take back what she had said. She settled with a simple apology, but didn't feel any better. She glanced up at Malfoy, who was staring out of one of the many windows. His eyes were full of pain and agony. Something she hadn't seen in Malfoy. He had always been so strong and nonchalant even in the most trying situations. Hermione knew how much Malfoy had wanted to please his father. Her guilt deepened, and she attempted to get her mind off of it by reading. It seemed to work for awhile. The room was silent for almost an hour. The rain started as Hermione was putting down her book and preparing to take a nap in the comfortable chair. The raindrops were large, and they pounded harshly against the windows. Both Hermione and Malfoy stopped what they were doing to look out the window to marvel at the sudden downpour. Hermione was the first to break her gaze away from the rain. She moved around, making a comfortable sleeping space for herself. She shivered in her short black skirt and red halter-top. Eagerly she settled deeply into her chair that served as makeshift bed and pulled her cloak up around her.

"Beauty rest isn't going to help, Granger." Malfoy said suddenly, surprising Hermione. She glared at him.

"Yes, I notice it hasn't done anything for you." She rested her head on the arm of the chair and attempted to calm her mind. The reading had been tiring due to the sleep she had missed the night before, and coming up with new insults to shove Malfoy off his perch was trying. Unfortunately, Malfoy sense her weakening.

"Where are your little sidekicks? Off trying to save the world?"

"They aren't allowed in the Head dormitory."

"Of course...says the rule breaking mudblood." This forced Hermione to sit up abruptly. Her eyes flashed with anger and frustration.

"You know, Malfoy, it's our seventh year. We've been enemies since day one. It's our last year at Hogwarts-"

"Thank god for that." Malfoy cut in while Hermione paused to take a breath.

"Don't you think we can at least try to get along for our last year? Especially since we're Heads now, all of the younger students look up to us." Malfoy's face turned falsely solemn. He stroked his chin with long, slender fingers in mock perplexity.

"You know, Granger...you're absolutely right. I should just forget about that slap in the third year." A grin spread across Hermione's face at the memory.

"You were asking for it. I never said this was going to be easy. I have to let go every time you've ever called me a mudblood."

"That's different. You don't have to let it go you just have to go into a state of denial. Just keep telling yourself that you don't have dirty blood. Of course you'll only be lying to yourself if you do that-"

"Holy god, Malfoy! This isn't that hard!" Hermione was on her feet in flurry of emotion and rage. Malfoy straightened from his relaxed stance to his full height of six feet, towering over the five foot eight Hermione. Nevertheless, she glared up into his icy blue eyes.

"Scared, Granger?" He whispered in a dangerous tone.

"Absolutely not." She answered quickly. He took a few steps towards her so that there were mere inches apart. She had to lift her head to stare him in the eyes.

"You should be." He whispered, his breath warm on her face.

"Oh I am...of your breath. Honestly, have you ever heard of mouthwash?" Hermione backed away from Malfoy. He didn't, of course, have bad breath, but he didn't need to know that. She heard, to her surprise, Malfoy chuckle softly.

"I leave that to my girls." Hermione almost threw up when she realized what he was actually referring to.

"You are disgusting."

"I am a sex god. That's all. Girls can't keep their hands...or tongues for that matter, off of me." Hermione felt her stomach lurch again.

"Malfoy! I'm not interested in your sex life."

"Granger, I know you're jealous and want to be a part of it, but-"

"WHAT?" Hermione exclaimed, shrilly. "Oh that is it, Malfoy! Your ego is so fucking big. I'm surprised a broom can even support you. What would ever make you think that I would want to be a part of your sex life?"

"I see the desire in your eyes."

"Desire to puncture your inflamed ego perhaps, but not to actually...oh that's nasty."

"Watch your fantasies, Granger. I play dirty, but not with dirty blood." Hermione sighed, realizing that this was hopeless.

"You know what, Malfoy? I want you to shut up for the rest of this year. I'm already sick of hearing your voice."

"And I'm already sick of seeing your face, but I'll deal with it." Hermione groaned in frustration and flopped down on the chair. Her little speech had worked for awhile. Malfoy remained silent until the she got up to retrieve another book. Even then he found it useless to speak. It seemed as though she was in another world, not hearing anything except the soft tune she was humming to herself. Classes began tomorrow, thanks to Dumbledore, who decided that it was too much for students to begin school the day after a fabulous party. Hermione buried herself in the book she had bought over the summer about Apparation. She was going for her exam over the Christmas break, and she wanted to make sure that she would pass her first time. She noticed that Malfoy was eyeing her, and finally it grew frustrating.

"Did you want something?"

"Besides you?" He raised his eyebrows, and Hermione almost choked on her own spit. He rolled his eyes and sighed. "I was just kidding, Granger. My god. Anyway, I just happened to notice that you're reading about Apparation. I took my test over the summer."

"Did you pass?" Hermione asked, suddenly interested.

"With flying colors, Granger. More than you'll be able to say." He grinned at her smugly before heading towards his room. Hermione glowered at his retreating back. How she loathed him.

"Granger! Get out of the bathroom!" Draco pounded angrily on the door of their shared bathroom. He heard the splashing of water from inside and rolled his eyes. She had been hogging the bathroom for the past half-hour.

"Go away, Malfoy! I'm in no mood to deal with your immaturity." Her voice came from inside. Draco groaned and slammed his fist onto the door.

"I want to go to bed now, but I need to take a shower."

"Why? You'll still smell horribly afterwards." Draco was so close to exploding, he forced himself to take five steps away from the door and take a few deep breaths. He glanced at the clock. It was eleven o'clock at night. He was tired from their first week of school, and he needed to bathe after the rigorous Quidditch practice he had just returned from. As captain, Draco wanted to schedule as many practices as possible so that Slytherin would beat the pulp out of Gryffindor when the games began. He had been looking forward to a quick hot shower, then going straight to sleep. Tomorrow was Saturday, and he planned on sleeping right on to twelve o'clock.

"I just returned from Quidditch practice. I'm hot. I'm tired. I need sleep."

"No kidding. I saw you nodding off in History of Magic this morning." He could sense her smiling behind the closed door.

"Binns is a loony. He's completely off his rocker."

"He's already dead. He can't be senile."

"He probably died senile and stayed senile." At this, Granger laughed in a way he had never heard. Especially around him.

"Well, senile or not, you can't fall asleep in his class. We have N.E.W.T.S to take."

"You can't honestly say Binns doesn't put you right to sleep. He drones on and on about stupid goblins, giants, and other magical miscreants that may have had a chance of being interesting. Provided of course that another less boring teacher was presiding."

"Oh will you quit complaining for once in your life? You're such a whiny little brat."

"Don't talk to me about whining. What about last night when you practically begged at my feet for my advanced copy of Hogwarts: A History? You were whining like a spoiled child when I refused."

"I wasn't that horrible. You're exaggerating."

"I'm not, and you know it."

"Look, it's decent reading. I've actually used it many times in the past."

"Used it to break rules, you mean."

"Will you knock it off? You're not exactly the law-abiding citizen. Girls aren't allowed in the boy's dormitories, but I happen to know that you've been inviting them there anyway."

"That was two years ago!"

"It was last year, Malfoy. I remember Lavender talking about it."

"Oh yeah, Lavender...she was a good lay."

"For the last time, Malfoy, I really do not need to be hearing this."

"You brought it up." Draco heard her mutter something that sounded like 'arrogant bastard'. He smirked and leaned against the doorframe. "Let's go, Granger. I'm getting impatient." Her laughter mocked him.

"Should I be frightened of an impatient Malfoy?"

"Terrified."

"You wouldn't dare do anything."

"Oh really?"

"You wouldn't have the balls."

"Want to bet?" He dug out his wand. She could call him a coward, but once she insulted his package, it got personal.

"Sure." Her voice sounded confident. _Stupid, Granger...so stupid._ He pointed his wand at the doorknob.

"Alohomora." He muttered and the door sprang open. As he had expected, her scream came loud and shrill. She did her best to hide herself in the bubbles, but Draco had caught a glimpse of her shapely body. He wondered when she had gotten such sultry curves and full breasts. Sitting in the bathtub, blushing with modesty, she almost looked pretty. Of course, Draco wasn't about to admit this...even to himself.

"Malfoy! Are a fucking idiot? What the hell do you think you're doing?" She shouted, furiously. Draco grinned and hoisted himself on top of the marble counter.

"I guess this means I won the bet."

"I can't believe you actually-"

"Broke open the door? Apparently you don't know me very well."

"I don't think I want to know you, Malfoy. Now get out."

"No."

"Malfoy...you have ten more seconds before this gets ugly. Now leave so I can get out." Reluctantly, Draco left the bathroom, flopping down on the couch in their shared common room. A triumphant smile crossed his lips. _Underestimation will be her undoing. Now and later._ He chuckled to himself as he replayed the scene. The expression of utter mortification and shock on her face had been priceless. Worth everything. Moments later she came out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around her. She had already magically dried her hair and it was twisted into two French braids. Her only acknowledgement of Draco was a cool glare as she crossed the common room to her bedroom. Draco rolled his eyes. Just like Granger to be incapable of laughing something off. He headed into the bathroom and proceeded to take a shower. After washing off, he just stood beneath the refreshing waterfall and closed his eyes. His seventh year so far had been hell. The schoolwork was harder and it required more and more time for homework and studying. His fellow Slytherins ceased to stop teasing him about living with a mudblood. His only real friend was his black owl, Poseidon. For a brief moment, he had thought about considering Granger a friend. It wasn't as though she acted like his friend, but at the moment, she was the closest he had. Just like the previous years, girls were drooling over him, but he knew that they were just in it for the sex. Truth be told, Draco was getting tired of one-night stands. He was ready for something more solid. It was in that moment, at 11:24, in the shower, that Draco discovered his maturity. Students said that they usually slack off in their seventh year, but Draco was determined to do the opposite. He rationalized that if he didn't have numerous friends to occupy his time, he could study more often. If he studied more often, his grades on the N.E.W.T.S. would be higher. If Granger was the closest thing he had to a friend, then... _Well, then I'm getting pathetic._

It was almost midnight when Draco came out of the shower. He had expected Granger to be in bed already, but when he entered the common room, he saw that he was wrong. She was sitting at the long wooden table with books spread out all over. She was scribbling furiously with her quill, her mouth moving slightly as she wrote. Draco smirked and walked over to her as quietly as he could. When he was right behind her, he bent down next to her ear.

"Granger!" She shrieked in surprise and whirled around, the end of her quill streaking across Draco's face. A line of black ink stretched across his left cheek. They both remained silent for a moment; Draco analyzed the damage to his flawless face.

"Well...that's what you get for sneaking up on me like that." Draco glared at her. She was trying, unsuccessfully, to hide a smirk.

"What the devil are you doing working this late anyway?"

"Snape's assignment is a killer." She muttered, turning back to her notes and books.

"Snape's assignment on the importance of wizard eyelashes in potions? That's not due until next Friday."

"I'm perfectly aware of that, Malfoy."

"You're bloody insane."

"So I've been told." She replied, not even glancing up from her books. He shook his head sadly and started walking towards his room. "Would you like to join me?" She asked suddenly. Draco froze. Not a muscle in his body moved. He didn't even blink.

"What did you say?" He asked, thinking that he had to have heard her wrong.

"You're complaining that you never have time to do your work. So work with me. We'll finish twice as fast, and you'll be done a week in advance." She spoke so matter-of-factly, he knew it made perfect sense. Draco disappeared into his room and reentered with his Potions supplies. He settled down across the table from the hard working Gryffindor and spread out his books and parchment.

"So what is the importance of wizard eyelashes in potions?" Draco asked, picking up his quill and doodling little snitches on his parchment.

"Can't you read?"

"Of course I can read, why-"

"Then read chapter six." She cut him off without offering a glance. He glared at her and began leafing through his Potions book. At chapter six, he read the title. _The Importance of Ingredients._ He wished that she didn't have to tell him where to look. It was completely obvious and it made him look like an idiot. He found the paragraph on wizard eyelashes and scanned it briefly. Then he began to write. After a moment, Granger looked up from her own work and stared at him. He attempted to ignore it, but soon it was so frustrating, he glanced up at her.

"What are you staring at?"

"Why are you already writing the essay?" She asked, confused. Draco didn't know what kind of a trick question that was.

"So I can finish it, Granger." He spoke to her as though she was an idiot.

"You don't outline your essays?" She tried again, her voice still patient. Draco raised his eyebrows.

"No.who does that?" At this, she blushed and held up her outline. It was extremely neat and organized, listing everything she was going to add into her essay.

"I think it helps with length. If you plan it out before hand, you'll never come up short on length and you won't have to bull shit your way through another roll of parchment."

"Isn't that time consuming?"

"Of course. But it's worth it when my essay comes out as I planned."

"That's stupid. No wonder you're always working past midnight." He grumbled, looking back down at his book.

"Fine. I was just trying to help, you know. But I should have known that Malfoys don't find organization to be important. Just reckless chaos."

"I'm too tired to argue with you, Granger. So just shut up and let me work." Draco gave her a withering look before continuing his essay. She shrugged and stood up.

"Fine. Then I'm going to bed. I'll see you in the morning." Then he heard her add in an undertone, "Unfortunately." He chuckled to himself and watched her disappear into her room. Sighing, he glanced at the clock. Twelve thirty...he should be getting some sleep as well. He closed his books and stacked them neatly in a pile. _See. Malfoys appreciate organization as much as the next family._ Curiously, he leaned over the table and picked up Granger's outline and essay. The essay was unfinished, but her outline clearly stated what would be discussed in the rest of the paper. After reading the first paragraph, he put it down in shock. No wonder she was Head Girl. Her essay was brilliant. Maybe it was the outline that made it so incredible, he mused. Ignoring his sleepiness, Draco sat back down at the table and constructed his own outline. It was one thirty when he finished, and feeling sleepily triumphant, he crawled into his bed. He awoke the next morning, twelve hours later. Feeling still sleepy, he decided that the brisk morning air would do him good. Dressing quickly in black pants and a white shirt with thin baby blue stripes, Draco made his way through the castle, deciding that fresh air would help. The kiss was on his mind. It haunted him and he didn't want it to. He had tried various methods to make the memory go away, but it always came back, relentlessly strong and vivid. Walking on the grounds a few minutes later, Draco attempted to think this through carefully. Hermione Granger was a mudblood. A know-it-all snob, a smart ass, and... the most beautiful girl he had ever seen. Draco sighed in defeat, as this thought popped into his head for the hundredth time. He kicked a rock as hard as he could.

"Ouch!" A girl shrieked. Draco looked up to see whom his rock had clobbered. Suddenly his body went numb. The girl staring back at him was none other than Hermione Granger. They both had tried to avoid this confrontation, but it was inevitably going to occur. Unable to say anything, both of them remained silent and stationary. _Think, Draco, think! And don't sound like an ass this time. _

"Sorry about the rock." He muttered. Finally able to control his own body again, he turned and started to walk away. A hand grabbed his arm to stop him.

"That's all you're going to say?"

"What did you want me to say? Oh Hermione Granger, I humbly apologize for kicking that rock! I had no idea it was going to hit you!" Draco bowed slightly to add to the sarcasm. She rolled her eyes.

"I wasn't talking about that. I was talking about the ball!" Draco straightened up and began walking through the trees at the edge of the Forbidden Forest.

"What about it?" He attempted to play dumb, but he knew that wouldn't get him anywhere. She exhaled sharply.

"You know exactly what I'm referring to, and you'd like me to say it out loud where there's always a possibility someone will hear it, then I shall."

"All right, all right." Draco muttered in surrender. "What is there to talk about it? We both made a mistake, and now it's over." Hermione bit her lip.

"No it's not over. You've been thinking about it too, haven't you?"

"No, I haven't Granger. You're just upset because I haven't the slightest interest in you." Draco tried to lie his way out of an uncomfortable conversation. His attempt failed.

"Don't lie to me, Malfoy. You're horrible at it."

"There's nothing we can do about it. It's gone. It's dead. It never happened."

"So that's it? We're just going to pretend it never happened and hope it dies?" He heard her voice crack slightly and he glanced down into her amber eyes. A tiny section of his heart melted at her wet eyes. Obviously, she had been thinking that their kiss was more than just a mistake. Maybe it wasn't, but that wasn't the real issue. The real issue was what they would have to face if they accepted that it wasn't a mistake. Draco was certainly not ready for that, and he doubted he ever would be. It was definitely in their better interest to just let it go and forget about it.

"Yes." He replied, unable to maintain their eye contact. Then he turned and walked quickly in the opposite direction, not wanting to look at her face. He didn't stop walking until he reached the stone bench that they had sat on the night of the masque. Something tugged at his heart, but he ignored it.


	4. Shattered

Chapter Four:

Shattered

Her name was Evelyn. A transfer student from Durmstrang. Hermione hated her. Hated her with such a strong passion, she couldn't bare to look at her. Which was getting increasingly more difficult since Malfoy kept bringing her back to their common room. Even as she slammed her enormous oak door shut, Evelyn's giggles still passed through. Hermione ran to her bed and buried her face deep inside a fluffy feather pillow. But it still came through. _What in god's name could she be laughing about like that?_ She thought angrily. Studying was absolutely impossible. Burying her face in the pillow once again, she screamed as loud as she could. After that, she felt slightly better. Taking a deep breath, she walked over to her massive desk and attempted to work on her History of Magic essay. Blocking out Evelyn's laughter seemed to be working...until a particularly loud giggle pierced the almost silence. Hermione threw down her quill and headed for the door, intending to burst into the common room and tell Evelyn to either shut up or leave. The closer she got to the door, the slower she walked. When her hand was resting on the doorknob, she sighed. Maybe she was being too sensitive. She was just used to having a silent workspace, and she didn't work well with sudden change. Deciding that she'd let it slide for the time being, she flopped down onto her bed. She felt so tired. She had been working harder than ever, determined to finish all of her assignments at least three days before they were due. Now with the Christmas season approaching, she wasn't quite sure what she would do with herself. Without any assignments over the vacation, she wouldn't be as occupied. And she might be forced to listen to Evelyn's laughter for the entire break. Hermione shuddered. Now that was a nauseating thought. Somehow, and she wasn't sure how, she had fallen asleep on her bed. She awoke the next morning to Malfoy, singing in the shower. He had a wonderful voice, no denying, but it was altogether a strange occurrence. Timidly, Hermione approached him in the common room. He was still humming to himself, and she almost smirked.

"Malfoy?"

"Yes?" He asked, in a rather pleasant voice. Hermione blinked, expecting him to attach an insult to the end of his comment, but nothing followed.

"Are you all right?" She asked, carefully. He turned to face her.

"I'm marvelous, Granger. Absolutely marvelous. How about you? Did you sleep well last night?" He asked, giving her a genuine smile. Hermione was so shocked she could have died right there in that moment. She merely stood, frozen like a statue, with her mouth hanging open. He gazed back at her, intently, waiting for her response as though nothing was wrong. _He's gone completely insane._ Hermione decided.

"All right, Malfoy...don't take this the wrong way, but it has to be said." She watched him carefully, and he nodded her on. "You're bloody insane!" Then came forth from Draco Malfoy's mouth the most sincere, beautiful, and cheerful laugh Hermione had ever heard.

"I feel fine, Granger. Actually, I feel better than fine. I feel-"

"That's the problem, Malfoy! You're never like this."

"Yes...it's a glorious transition, isn't it?" Hermione's eyes almost popped out of her head. _Glorious? He is mad._ Biting her lip in nervousness, Hermione prepared the final test.

"Malfoy, you're a slimy git with the brain of a big fat stupid monkey." She winced, waiting for him to attack her at any moment.

"I'm sorry you feel that way, Granger." Was all he said before giving her a cheery wave and disappearing from the common room. Hermione waved back weakly. In a daze, she gathered her books and headed outside to study on the grounds. With a proper heating charm, it would be quite nice outside. She needed a quiet place to think about what the hell was wrong with Malfoy. She turned a corner sharply and gasped at the sight she saw. At the end of the corridor, Hermione saw the answer to what the hell was up with Malfoy. He was standing there, with Evelyn in his arms. A new emotion heated Hermione's blood, and she looked away.

Hermione was ready to go Avada Kedrava on herself. Death had to be better than her life at the moment. Thinking she had the common room all to herself Saturday night, she had spread all of her textbooks and parchment over the entire long table. She was moving along the table, picking up new things she could put in her essay, when the door opened. Malfoy entered with Evelyn on his arm. She was giggling. Hermione felt every muscle in her body seize. It took every ounce of her strength to smile in greeting. She wrenched her eyes away from the despicable sight and attempted to concentrate on her work.

"Oh, Drakie! You're so sweet!" Evelyn would suddenly squeal, destroying Hermione's focus. Setting her jaw, Hermione would then continue working until the next uncalled for outburst. Then things would suddenly get quiet, and Hermione knew that they were probably making out on the couch. Something in her stomach lurched unpleasantly at the visual. Then Evelyn would start giggling again, and Hermione felt like killing herself. _It's going to be all right...as long as they stay to themselves, I'll be fine. I'll get through this-_

"Hermione? Have you ever considering dieting?" Evelyn suddenly asked.

"Excuse me?" Hermione looked at Evelyn, trying hard not to wretch.

"Dieting." Evelyn prompted. "I was just noticing that if you got rid of some of the flab on your arms and legs, you'd have a decent figure." Hermione had to process Evelyn's suggestion several times in her head before admitting that she _had_ just been told that she was fat. Hermione had never thought of herself as fat, but she wouldn't call herself skinny. Truth be told, she didn't want to be either. Evelyn was the perfect example of what it was to be too skinny. She was extremely petite with a small waist and large chest. _Probably the only reason Malfoy likes her anyway._

"I'm rather content with the way I look, Evelyn." Hermione replied through clenched teeth. _Don't...say...another-_

"You are? That's unfortunate. Make up would probably do you some good as well. Some mascara, and you could definitely use cover up. That would make your face look less infested with acne. A touch of lip-gloss would make your lips look more full, since they're awfully thin now. And perhaps some blonde highlights in your plain brown hair..."

"By the time you get done putting all that shit on me, I won't be able to breathe." Hermione was slowly losing her cool. _For your own health, Evelyn, don't say another word-_

"At least you'll be easier on the eyes."

"That's it. I can't take this anymore. I could not stand the giggling. I thought that would be the worst. Guess I was wrong. The making out on the couch as though I'm not sitting right here in the same room...I was expecting to throw up everything I've eaten for the past year. Once again, I thought that that would be the worst. But no. Now I have this bitch all up in my face about how I look. Here's a newsflash for you, sweet heart. You're not pretty! Take off all of the extra make up, take away the breast enhancements, and what do you have? Nothing. You had to pay a shit load of money to look like that, and what do you get from having that kind of beauty? Thousands of men sniffing at your skirt? Is that your biggest accomplishment? So you can tell me that I'm not pretty. At least I'm not a fucking whore." When Hermione paused to take a breath, Evelyn started to open her mouth to reply. "No! I am not finished here! And when I am, you still can't say a damn thing. Now get out of here before I make you." Hermione hissed, ripping out her wand. Evelyn's eyes widened in fear and she jumped off Malfoy's lap. Once the door had slammed, Hermione sighed with relief.

"Oh thank god. I thought I might have had to kill myself."

"Granger! What the hell did you do that for?" Hermione couldn't believe her ears. Didn't he even hear what Evelyn had just said to her?

"Earth to Malfoy! She had the nerve to insult my appearance when she looks like a damn whore." Malfoy was on his feet in an instant, his eyes flashing with anger.

"Don't you dare say that about Evelyn!"

"I'll say it again in an instant, Malfoy."

"Go ahead. I dare you. But you won't live to see tomorrow." Hermione snorted at his empty threat. It would have sounded convincing if he were actually capable of murder.

"Evelyn is a fucking whore." Hermione spoke slowly, calling Malfoy's bluff. In a flash, he had grabbed her roughly by the shoulders and slammed her into the wall. She whimpered as pain shot down her spine.

"I warned you, Granger." He growled, shaking her hard. Fear possessed Hermione suddenly as she realized he was dead serious. She began to struggle against his iron hold, but it was a futile attempt.

"Let go, you bastard!" She shrieked, desperately yanking to free herself. He did let go. But he threw her to the floor. Her head smacked against the stone floor and an eerie blackness swept over her mind.

After throwing her to the ground, Draco had stormed into his room. He had been positively fuming. Not five minutes had passed and there was a knock on the common room door. Jumping up from his bed, he hurried into the main room. Granger was still lying on the floor, unconscious. Quickly, he picked her up and shoved her into the nearest room, not realizing that the nearest room was his. Composing himself, he walked over to the door and opened it. Evelyn was standing there, looking pretty and innocent. She opened her mouth to say something, but Draco was so relieved to see her, he captured her lips with his immediately. Somehow they made their way to the couch, leaving a trail of clothing on the way. Kissing her, Draco was absolutely positive that Evelyn was the one. She was his girl. The girl he had been looking for his entire life. Well, ever since he stopped believing girls had cooties. She did things to him. He smiled at the thought of her. He felt happier within her presence. Her touch set his body on fire. She _had_ to be the one for him. He had known it the first time he saw her. Her bright red hair touching her shoulders; her violet eyes that danced when she was near him. One glance at her, and he decided that she was his. And god forbid any man tried to stand in his way. She was wild, yet innocent. Never afraid to take a risk, but never afraid to slap a man who was out of line. After a particularly fervent kiss, Draco pulled away to look into her eyes. They were dark and almost dangerous looking. Sparks of lust and desire were strikingly visible, and Draco kissed her to soothe her raging passion. In the midst of their making out, Draco felt the sudden need to tell her exactly how he felt about her. When he felt the moment was right, he pulled away again to look her in the eyes.

"I love you, Evelyn." She blinked at him, then pulled his face down to hers once again. He tried to soothe himself with the rationalization that that was her way of saying she loved him too. No, he knew that had to be it. She did love him. There was no question in his mind. They were both so in love, and Draco knew that he would end up marrying her. She left around midnight, and Draco remained on the couch in the common room. He was clad only in black silk boxers, his hair was mussed, and his lips were swollen. But he was smiling. He was completely content with himself. Something he had never felt before. There was always a defect he found in him that would drive him insane until he corrected it. It was something Lucius forced him to do. Find his faults and amend himself. The blazing fire crackled merrily, lulling Draco into sleep. Pictures of his beloved Evelyn flashed in front of his eyes, and his smile widened. She was beautiful. Everything he wanted. Who was Granger to say that Evelyn was a whore? Granger is just jealous. _Wait, where is Granger?_ Draco stood up and looked around, finally remembering he had stuffed her into his room. She was still lying on his bed, motionless. Her chest was rising and falling with each breath. Red marks tainted her arms where he had grabbed her so roughly. Slowly, he sank onto his bed next to her and traced the marks his fingers had made. _I'm sorry..._ He thought to himself. Exhausted and delirious, Draco lay down next to the sleeping beauty and closed his eyes.

Hermione awoke the next morning and was immediately confused. _Since when is my room decorated in green and silver?_ She wondered, glancing around. Suddenly the reality hit her and she gasped. She was in Draco Malfoy's bed. To her extreme horror, she couldn't remember anything about the previous night. Nervously, she snuck a glance at the sleeping Slytherin beside her. He was dressed only in black silk boxers and was sleeping like a baby. She inched carefully off the bed so as not to wake him. Never disturb a sleeping dragon. Once she was in the safety of her own room, she collapsed onto the floor. What the hell had happened? All she could remember was her telling off Evelyn...she smiled at the memory. Oh, it had felt so good to say all of that out loud. Feeling slightly better, she dressed in navy blue sweat pants and a red tank top. It was only five o'clock in the morning, but Hermione knew that if she asked, Dobby would bring her breakfast. She had just exited the common room when she heard two females giggling quietly. Hermione's eyes narrowed. She'd know that giggle anywhere. Realizing that the giggles were coming closer, she panicked and ducked behind a large statue of a phoenix with out stretched wings.

"I have him wrapped around my little finger, Colette." Evelyn was saying. Hermione felt her heart skip a beat. She's talking about Malfoy...

"When are you going to dump him?"

"We haven't had sex yet. That's the only reason I'm with the poor boy. He's not ready for a woman like me." Hermione felt her blood boil with fury. It took everything she had to keep her silent. _Hang on just a little longer..._

"Definitely not. When are you going to seduce him?"

"Tonight. I'm going to need some help though. I need that stupid Granger girl out of the dormitory all night." Hermione's breath caught in her throat.

"What do you want me to do? Kidnap her?"

"Of course kidnap her. Ambush her when she's going to library or something. Keep her in a broom closet or something until morning. By then she won't be of help to anyone." A mix of fear and fury filled Hermione, and she could feel her hands clenching into fists.

"Fine. You always leave me the dirty work." The girls giggled into the distance. An extremely horrified Hermione emerged from behind the statue. _Malfoy! I have to tell him._ She decided quickly, turning around and bursting into the common room. As if on cue, the blonde Slytherin emerged from the bathroom, looking particularly sexy clad only in a towel.

"What's wrong with you? You look like you've had a run in with a dementor." He remarked, shaking out his wet hair. Then he eyed her shoulders, and Hermione looked at her own arms, noticing the red marks for the first time.

"Look, I meant to apologize about that-"

"There's no time. Listen, Malfoy, you have got to listen to me. Evelyn's using you." Confusion clouded Malfoy's eyes, and then it was quickly replaced by anger.

"Granger, I know how you feel about Evelyn; hell you made it inescapably clear last night. But come on, you don't have to try and sabotage our relationship."

"I'm not telling you this for my own health, Malfoy! She has this master plan in which she's just going to use you for sex. It's all happening tonight. She's going to seduce you, and her accomplice is going to kidnap me so I'll be out of the way-"

"Granger, you're talking crazy. It's early. You probably just dreamt it."

"MALFOY! STOP BEING SUCH A STUBBORN JACKASS! I'VE NEVER BEEN MORE SERIOUS IN MY LIFE!" Hermione exploded, losing her patience.

"Let me explain this to you, Granger. Evelyn and I are in love. We'll probably even get married someday. She's not using me for anything. She wouldn't hurt me like that." Hermione felt her anger rising to an unbearable temperature.

"Malfoy...I tried explaining it to you in a calm manner. I tried explaining it to you in a not so calm manner. You still don't understand. But I tried...so I feel no guilt. See you later."

She left, leaving a very confused and annoyed Malfoy behind.

Hermione kicked a rock as hard as she could. Harry and Ron were sitting on a stone bench next to the lake having a debate about Quidditch. She could never get into their conversations. But today it didn't even bother her that they completely ignored her presence. She was being torn apart by two things. The first, was obviously Malfoy. Why wouldn't he believe her? A little voice in the back of her head said because neither of them has trusted the other since day one of year one. She kicked another rock angrily. _Well he shouldn't hold such a strong grudge._ The same little voice in the back of her head called her a hypocrite. Discovering she was getting no where fast, she dropped to the ground and rested her head in her hands. The second thing that was driving her absolutely nuts was the question of why. Why the bloody hell did she care so much that Malfoy was about to get hurt? Why did it matter to her? He hadn't been the nicest person to her in the past, so why was she worrying about him? It was the damned kiss. That stupid kiss, one dumb little brush of the lips, and she was going all soft inside about Malfoy. It's not worth it, she reminded herself. _He wouldn't listen anyway._ Besides, he obviously believed he could handle himself, so who was she to interfere and try to stop him from going on an ego-trip.

"Hermione? Are you all right?" Harry asked, waving his hand in front of her face. She jumped in surprise, but relaxed when she saw Harry.

"Malfoy issues." She explained briefly. Ron and Harry exchanged dark looks.

"Do you need us to pummel him for you, Hermione?" Ron asked, massaging his balled fist. The glint in his eye was murderous, making Hermione nervous.

"That won't be necessary, Ron, but I'll let you know if I ever need you two."

"Yeah, we're here for you, Hermione. Just say the word and we're all over him." Harry added. Ron glared around the school grounds as though hoping he would see Malfoy. The reddish hue in his cheeks hinted to both Harry and Hermione that they shouldn't say anything for awhile that would provoke him. So Harry wisely changed the subject from Quidditch to Divination. Ron seemed to be happy with bashing Professor Trelawney. So after they became lost in their conversation about whose death prediction was more gruesome, Hermione returned to her conflicting thoughts. Malfoy was becoming her friend, she realized. More and more often, she was happy to see him when he entered the common room. She enjoyed their debates over the direction of the Ministry of Magic at breakfast and dinner. They usually ate their lunch elsewhere, but Hermione almost wished that they spent that mealtime together as well. Not because of course she had a physical attraction to him, she was quick to remind herself. Suddenly she had an idea.

"Hey, you guys?"

"Yeah, Hermione?"

"Would you mind if I spent the night in the Gryffindor tower?" They both exchanged glances that Hermione could not interpret. They were both smiling when they turned back to look at her.

"Of course, Hermione!"

"You know you're always welcome."

"Thanks guys." She beamed at her friends, but they were already sucked into their conversation...again. That evening, Hermione didn't sleep at all. She tossed and turned in her Gryffindor bed, worrying about Malfoy. She hoped he would be all right. The next morning, she woke up early. By four thirty, she was heading towards the Head dormitory. Passing the window, she noticed a solitary figure sitting by the lake. A second glance forced her to change direction. She approached the Slytherin boy slowly and quietly, only making her presence known when she was sitting on the ground next to him.

"Malfoy? Are you all right?" She asked quietly. A tear slid down his pale cheek and he didn't bother to wipe it away.

"Why do you always have to be right?"

"This time...I wish I wasn't." He shifted his gaze to her soft face. Something warmed inside of him for only the second time in his life. She had been the cause of both times.

Draco was faring as well as he could. His grades were slipping and his concentration was failing. He didn't like to think about how he had shunned Granger when she had only been trying to help him. And why did she do that? She didn't have to. It was the kiss, he finally decided. It was also the kiss that made his mood change abruptly when Hagrid announced that he was to be partners with the Head Girl in Care of Magical Creatures. He became suddenly determined to forget about what had happened with Evelyn.

"Hermione, I'm sorry, but yeh're paired up with Malfoy." Draco watched Hagrid glance over his list again, and shrug apologetically. Hermione let her head drop into her hands. She sighed and moved over to where Draco was. Made suddenly uncomfortable, Draco struggled to find something to say.

"Nice day, isn't it?" He commented, then winced. One look at the darkened sky, and she smothered laughter. He was so captivated by her gentle sparkling eyes, it took him a moment to realize that she was laughing at him. He narrowed his blue eyes.

"Find something funny, Granger?" He watched her eyes sparkle again.

"Quite, Malfoy. Quite." She had stopped laughing, but her lips were still curved in a smile. A raindrop fell and landed on Draco's nose, causing Hermione's smile to widen.

"I agree. It's such a beautiful day." Hermione mocked him. He glared at her. He especially did not appreciate being made fun of.

"I didn't hear you make an attempt to start a conversation."

"I didn't know you wanted to start a conversation." Unable to reply to that, Draco snatched the scroll of parchment Hagrid was handing out.

"The firs' team to find all of the creatures on the list will get a prize."

"I'll bet it's some of Hagrid's treacle fudge." Hermione joked in an attempt to make him smile, but it went right over Draco's (hot) blonde head.

"Good, I'm starved." Hermione stared at him like he had suggested they go shake hands with the Whomping Willow.

"You don't want to be eating that stuff."

"Why not?" Hermione shuddered.

"I can't even imagine what it would taste like if I could actually chew it." Draco found laughter escaping his lips for the first time in what seemed like forever, and he watched Hermione's expression turn to relief. Luckily, most of the other groups had already left for the Forbidden Forest, so no one could observe the scene. He stopped laughing immediately, and cleared his throat.

"Well we should start our scavenger hunt now. The groups already have a head start." He started walking, and Hermione followed, still talking.

"Well we have my genius. So we are, in a sense, ahead of the others, anyway." Draco snorted at her confidence.

"Oh please. I'm smarter than you are." Hermione pretended to choke as she took a sip of her water bottle. The front of her robes was splashed with water, and they clung to her figure a bit.

"Good god, Granger, can you please control your spasms?"

"It wasn't a spasm. I was merely choking in disbelief."

"Turn left over here."

"First of all, don't order me around. Second, we should keep going straight. Hinkypunks like swamps, and the sloppy mud on the ground means we're getting close to a swamp that lies straight ahead."

"You're wrong, Granger. Hinkypunks reside in grassy thickets, which means we should go left here to get away from the swamps." He made to change direction, but Hermione grabbed his arm. A million volts of electricity surged through him, and his breath caught in his throat.

"Trust me, Malfoy, I know what I'm talking about."

"Well I know what I'm talking about!" Draco shouted back at her. _No you don't, you git! _Hermione released Draco's arm and sighed.

"Then you go your way. I'm going this way. I'll bet my entire fortune on me finding a Hinkypunk before you do."

"Fine!"

"Fine."

"FINE!" Draco stalked off into the trees, temper raging. All of his pent up emotions had come spilling out in his fury. He had walked about five minutes before he began to think clearly again.

"Shit, what the hell am I doing?" He muttered, angrily, whipping around and rushing in Hermione's direction. A couple of raindrops hit his head, and he cursed under his breath. Pretty soon after, the rain was coming down in sheets. Soaked and exhausted, Draco continued to plod through the forest. He paused and backed up a few paces. He had definitely seen that large blue rock before. Draco kicked a tree stump in frustration and slumped down onto the rock. It was wet, but so was Draco.

"FUCK!" He shouted angrily. Then there came a rustling of leaves. Draco's head snapped up, and he glanced around. An odd sort of bird cawed loudly, and he jumped. The rustling came again, and Draco reached for his wand. He positioned himself behind a tree, and when the moving object emerged, he sprang out and pointed his wand at it.

"Malfoy, what the HELL are you doing?" A girl screamed. Through the rain, Draco could make out Hermione's confused face.

"Granger?!?" He brushed his hair out of his eyes to make sure it was her.

"Malfoy! You idiotic git! If you had just listened to me, I wouldn't have had to come looking for you. Now, it's raining, I'm freezing, and we're LOST!" She sighed and rolled her eyes. Draco thought she looked awfully cute when she was distressed.

"Well maybe if you have come with me, none of that would have happened either!"

"That's ridiculous! If we had come this way, we'd still be lost."

"But we would have been together! Two heads are better than one, you know!"

"Last time I checked, my intelligence doesn't match yours."

"It doesn't have to! Together, we're smarter than Dumbledore." By now, they were both shouting at each other, not really acknowledging the rain. Their attention was snatched, rather harshly, by a streak of lightening dancing across the darkened sky. The entire forest lit up in the moment. There was a moment of brief silence, then a deafening rumble of thunder. Hermione cringed and trembled faintly.

"All right. Let's find our way out of here." Hermione muttered. Draco nodded and took her hand, dragging her with him. They walked in silence for awhile; the occasional thunder and the rain were the only sounds. Draco increased his pace, eager to get out of the forest. Hermione had to break into a light jog to keep up. A painful cramp sliced through her left side.

"Draco- wait." She gasped in pain. Then she tripped over something on the ground and fell, her hand ripping from Draco's grasp. Draco stopped and fell to his knees beside her.

"Are you all right?" Hermione closed her eyes tightly, willing the throbbing pain in her ankle to disappear. Draco watched her face contorted with pain, and lifted her head gently into his lap. "Where does it hurt?" He held his hand above her eyes, blocking the rain so she could look at him.

"My ankle. I twisted it when I fell." He glanced down at her ankle, which was covered by black knee socks. Not wanting to removed her shoes and socks, knowing it would be a nightmare trying to put them back on, he gathered her in his arms and got up. She wasn't particularly difficult to lift, thanks to her petite figure and his muscular upper body. He continued to walk through the foliage, making mental images of where they were. Twenty minutes later, Draco recognized the same place were Hermione had tripped.

"Bloody hell." Draco groaned, collapsing onto a tree stump, still holding onto Hermione. Her hair was completely drenched and it clung to her cheeks in long, dark strands. His own blonde hair was plastered to his head, and he brushed a few irritating pieces out of his face. For a moment he considered using his wand to dry them both, but he figured they'd just get wet again, so there was no point. A particularly loud crash of thunder sent Hermione into a tremble, and Draco instinctively held her closer to him. They remained quiet, listening to the rain.

"You can't forget it either...can you?" Hermione spoke suddenly. Draco glanced down at the girl in his arms. Her gaze was directed towards the trees, but when she sensed him looking at her, she shifted it to meet his.

"Forget what?" Draco asked, although he knew perfectly well what she meant. She sighed and moved her suddenly teary eyes away from his.

"You're that ashamed? You're so damned ashamed, that you can't even acknowledge what's happening between us when we're alone?" Draco paused. She was right. He was worrying too much about what everyone else thought...he had almost forgotten what he thought. But what did he think? He couldn't even make sense of Transfiguration, let alone his feelings towards Hermione.

"Look, Hermione, I can't do this right now. There's just too much going on in my life, and I can't handle this reality." He sighed, loosening his grip on her frail body. He watched the emotions in her eyes evolve from disappointment to anger.

"Well maybe if you had just listened to me in the first place, Malfoy, you wouldn't have so much going on in your life!"

"I didn't know if I was able to trust you or not, Granger. In my position, you would have done the same exact thing."

"I don't know what I would have done, all right? But arguing is not helping our current situation! I want to get out of this forest right now. And once we get out of this mess that you got us into, I never want to hear you, see you, or in any way come in contact with you ever again! Do I make myself clear?" She shouted, shrilly. Draco felt his already damaged heart being pierced even further. But once again, his anger took over instead of his hurt.

"Fine! I want the same exact thing. Hanging around with a mudblood wouldn't do much for my reputation!" It wasn't a stinging comeback, but he had little energy to go on. She looked as though she was about to reply, when a familiar voice interrupted.

"Hermione? Hagrid, I found them!" Draco glanced through the woods and saw Weasley's red hair approaching. He was instantly reminded of Evelyn, and his thoughts darkened. Life was so horrible, death would be an improvement.

He could not focus when every minute of every day, Evelyn's face flashed in front of his eyes. There were whispers all around. Following him, where ever he went. They talked about him behind his back. His reputation for being the coldest Slytherin in history was ruined. They had finally seen a soft spot in his solid suit of armor. A tear streaked across his cheek as he stared up at the starry sky. He had never known pain such as this. The physical pain he felt when Lucius had mercilessly beat him was almost insignificant compared to the extreme emotional pain he felt at the present moment. It had been a week since the incident, and he hadn't spoken to anyone. Not a word passed through his lips to anyone. Not even to the person who had seemed to be the most concerned. Yes, Granger had been eyeing him with sympathy for the past few days. Despite what she had said in the forest, Draco had been noticing that she kept a close eye on him. She seemed to notice that Draco no longer ate. She would obviously notice that he no longer came to complete their Potions essays at midnight. Deep down, Draco really seemed to miss those late night sessions. Their conversations were civil, and sometimes they got into heated debates that forced Granger to ball her tiny hands into fists. He smirked to himself as he pictured the furious Gryffindor. She was awful cute when she was passionate about something. Especially if she was positive that she was correct. Often, Draco would argue a point that was wrong just to see her defend herself. He had really ruined his chances at a real friendship with her in the forest. She would probably never give him another thought. But he would be thinking about her constantly. It began to concern him that he spent time thinking about her. _Of course, she does seem to be the only person in this school who gives a shit about me. But that doesn't make sense...she's Granger. I'm Draco Malfoy. It was predestined that we were never to get along._ For the first time in a week, Draco started to think about something other than his misery over Evelyn. His misery over Granger. The door to the North Tower creaked and footsteps approached. Draco stiffened, expecting some group of Slytherins to come by and degrade him. He glanced up to see who had arrived. Confusion swept over him when he saw Granger. _How did she know where I was? And more importantly, why is she suddenly caring again?_

"How are you feeling today, Malfoy?" She asked, tentatively.

"Peachy." Draco replied sarcastically. She looked wounded, and Draco felt a pang of guilt. _After all, she did try to make sure I was all right._ "Sorry, Granger. I haven't been having the best week."

"I noticed." She bit her lower lip and looked as though she was hesitating. "Can I do anything to help?" A faint blush crept into her cheeks, making a sardonic smirk curl on Draco's lips.

"I don't think so." He replied. She shrugged and turned around to leave him alone. Some thing inside Draco told him to stop her. Before he realized what he was doing, the words were already out of his mouth.

"Granger, wait." She turned around and looked at him. The sweet amber eyes that had captivated him again and again were shining with concern.

"I-I really need a hug." Draco stammered. Yes, that was what he needed. He truly needed a decent, sincere, comforting hug to make him feel better. She stared at him in shock for a moment, but walked back over to the stone wall he was sitting on. He stood up and almost fell into her arms. Then he did something he hadn't planned on doing. He cried into her soft hair. He wasn't entirely sure why the tears fell, but he couldn't stop them. Silent tears cascaded down his cheeks as he held onto her as tightly as he could without hurting her. Slowly, the familiar warmth returned to his body. Once again, his heart was touched by something he'd never felt. Even Evelyn hadn't been able to penetrate the harshly cold shell of his heart. But she _had_ managed to break it. After Draco felt calmer, he pulled away, but only slightly so he could still hold her in his arms.

"Thank you." He whispered, staring straight into her eyes. A warm smile spread across her full pink lips and a fuzzy feeling came about in his stomach. Both of them remained still, neither one of them truly wanting to move. Finally, Draco let her go, but stared after her with a longing that he had never felt when she walked away. _When did she get so beautiful? _He wondered, watching her glance once more over her shoulder at him. She offered a comforting smile, and surprisingly, it did make him feel better. Without her presence, darkness came over Draco, and his body went cold. He stared at the grass that was miles below. If he jumped, the impact would possibly kill him immediately. He gazed longingly at the distant ground and began building up the intent to jump. The door creaked open again and he whipped around.

"Sorry if I scared you...I just wanted to make sure that you're coming back to the dormitory tonight." Granger said, looking right through him. Draco wondered how she did it. How could she possibly know that he was thinking about taking his own life? It was as though she knew everything. She seemed to understand what he was thinking about doing, and she approached him slowly.

"Malfoy...I know it's hard. I've gone through this before. The first time is always the hardest to get through...but you can't give up. There's always going to be something good to make up for the bad things that happen."

"It doesn't seem that way."

"No. But it always happens that way. Out of the bad things comes something good."

"Do you realize how stupid that sounds?"

"Yes, it is rather dumb. But life is volatile." She tossed him a pretty smile and he felt his sadness dwindling.

"So who's broken your heart?" Draco inquired, deciding that he thoroughly enjoyed the blushing Gryffindor's company.

"Enough men to make me feel like it's not worth it."

"So here you are preaching to me about how it's going to get better...and you don't truly believe it yourself."

"I do believe it...I just don't believe that it's going to get better by finding the perfect guy. Or girl in your case. Right now it doesn't matter. I wouldn't be able to balance out my time if I had a boyfriend."

"He might start getting jealous of the books you spend all your time with." He grinned at her. Then he suddenly realized how long it had been since a smile had graced his features. It felt awesome. She shot him a glare, but eventually chuckled.

"Maybe you're right. Maybe I do spend too much time on schoolwork." She trailed off, looking at the stars, completely lost in thought.

"But think about it, Granger. You wouldn't be Head Girl if you didn't spend most of your time studying."

"You don't spend all your time studying and you're Head Boy."

"Well, I was a shoo in for Head Boy."

"I still can't fathom why Harry wasn't selected."

"Because Potter doesn't have the Head Boy look." She narrowed her eyes at him, but amusement sparked in her eyes.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that Potter isn't as irresistibly attractive as I am. It's the most important characteristic of the Head Boy."

"Harry is just as good-looking as you are. What are you talking about?"

"So you'll admit that I am indeed irresistibly attractive?" Draco grinned at her blushing cheeks. He had trapped her in a corner, and she had no choice but to answer. "I'm waiting, Granger." He sighed in mock impatience.

"I don't want to inflate your already oversized ego."

"Ah! So you _do_ think I'm irresistibly attractive."

"I never said-"

"Yes you did."

"Fine! You _are_ irresistibly attractive, Malfoy!" She exclaimed in frustration. Draco thought that her confession sounded so much better since she was upset. He winked at her.

"Of course I am."

"Yeah, well, don't expect to ever hear me say that again."

"Once was enough."

"Don't you dare tell anyone I said that."

"Who would I tell? No one gives me the chance to say anything before laughing in my face." Draco replied darkly. Granger went silent for a moment.

"You can't let it bother you, Malfoy. If I've ever known an apathetic person, it's you. I'm actually surprised it affects you this way."

"I'm not completely heartless, Granger."

"I realize that. But you can't keep lingering on the past. Suck it up and move on."

"Oh good. More words of wisdom from the all knowing Hermione Granger."

"Don't put me on the same level as Trelawney." Draco laughed at her expression of distaste. He had heard about her stalking out of the class in the third year. He secretly admired her defiance, but once again, that was something she never needed to know.

"Did you steal all your advice out of a Divination textbook?" Draco asked, knowing that the subject of Divination infuriated her. Just as he had predicted, her face flushed red and her hands balled into fists.

"Of course not! This is all what I've learned from life experience. Besides, nothing in that subject would ever be of use to me! It's a lot of guesswork that doesn't even require real knowledge of anything!" She ranted. Draco quickly smothered a laugh with his hand. She paused, catching the action out of the corner of her eye.

"What are you laughing at?"

"You." He couldn't fight the smirk off of his face.

"Why? What did I do? Is my hair sticking up or something?" She asked, running her hands through her silky hair. Draco followed the action with his silver eyes and felt a stirring sensation inside of him.

"You look beautiful." He replied, not realizing he had said what he had been thinking. She stared at him in shock for a moment before averting her eyes. She chewed on her bottom lip and stared at the ground, obviously embarrassed. But it was nothing compared to how Draco felt. Mortified was more the adjective to describe him. _How did I just let that slip? And why was I even thinking it in the first place?_ He stared up at the stars, wishing that he hadn't said anything. A shooting star flew across the sky, disappearing behind the tower. When he couldn't see the falling star any longer, he only had to lower his gaze a fraction to stare into Granger's eyes.

"I wanted to say that I'm sorry about what I said in the forest. I didn't really want what I said." She murmured quietly. Then she looked down quickly, as though she was frightened. "We should probably get back to the dormitory now." Draco nodded in agreement, wanting to leave the awkward situation behind. He followed her as she walked towards the door. He cast another glance at the starry sky and could have sworn he saw the stars swimming to form a heart. Convincing himself that he was just exhausted and worn out, he pushed it aside and kept walking. The return to the dormitory was silent; the only sounds were their footsteps. Inside the common room, Granger headed for her room. Draco made it to the couch and collapsed onto it. He stared into the fire and felt his eyelids slowly growing heavier. The couch was comfortable enough to spend one night on, he decided. He kicked off his shoes and settled on the cushions. He stared into the fire again. It was almost Christmas. The visit to Hogsmeade was approaching, and usually he had someone to go with. Usually he had millions of girls begging for him to take them out for a butter beer. Evelyn had done something. Spread some sort of rumor, and now girls avoided him like the bubonic plague. Except for Granger. A smile tugged at the corners of his lips. Content, he began to drift off to sleep. Soon the fire died and the air went cold. He shivered in the dark. He wasn't sure when, but he woke up under a large warm blanket. The design was hand sewn and unfamiliar, but it was the warmest blanket. Granger noticed him wake up and she offered him a smile before leaving. He grinned. He should have known that she had given him the blanket. Snuggling further under his cover, he drifted back to sleep, even though it was well into the afternoon.


	5. Mistletoe

Chapter Five:

Mistletoe

Hermione hummed to herself as she ran her fingers down the spines of large dusty books. She was in the least visited area of the library. The topics discussed were notoriously dull, but Hermione knew that the more background information she knew on the important things, the better her N.E.W.T.S. would be. Finally, she pulled a massive book from the top shelf. She had underestimated the weight of the book, and it toppled to the floor with a loud crash. She winced, hoping that Madame Pince hadn't heard.

"Nice one, Granger." Malfoy's silky voice came out of no where. She jumped at first, but recovered in time to give him a withering stare. He winked at her and retrieved the book from the floor. He glanced at the title and raised his eyebrows.

"_The Origin of Potion-Making._" He leafed through it for a moment before handing it to her. "Looks fascinating." He gave her a sarcastic grin.

"They don't call this section 'The Forgettables' for nothing." She replied, tucking the book under her arm. "So what brings you to the library?"

"You."

"Me? Why?" Hermione asked in surprise.

"Did you want to have lunch?" Hermione almost dropped the book. She glanced at Malfoy quickly, wondering if he was just messing with her head. He noticed her wariness and grinned at her reassuringly.

"It's a thank you for the blanket last night."

"Oh. You're welcome."

"Come on. Let's go eat. I'm starving." He grabbed her hand and dragged her out the doors. Hermione laughed as he whipped her around corners in his desperation to eat.

"Men and their appetites." She rolled her eyes at him when they finally reached the dormitory. He rolled his eyes back at her.

"Women and their nagging." She laughed at his expression, which eventually brought him to laugh as well. The long table was covered with food, and immediately, Malfoy dug in. As always, Hermione followed her dainty procedure. With raised eyebrows, she studied the Slytherin across from her, who neglected to use utensils.

"That's disgusting, Malfoy. Could you try being a civilized human and use a fork and knife?" She wrinkled her nose in distaste. Draco rolled his eyes at her. He continued to stuff his face, just to make her mad.

"Could you at least chew with your mouth closed?" She asked, with mock impatience. Draco paused again and stared at her. She was cutting up her food into small pieces and eating them daintily. Obviously she had never seen a hungry man eat.

"Granger...I'm hungry. I slept through breakfast. I need food."

"Then eat, but don't be a wild beast about it." She exclaimed, taking a sip from her goblet. Draco was tempted to scream at her and make her understand about men and food, but decided on another method of revenge. He flicked a piece of meat at her. It landed in her hair and she shrieked, staring at him in horror.

"Oh no you didn't." She muttered, a dangerous glint in her eyes.

"Oh yes...I did. And what are you going to do about it?" He demanded. Before he had time to think, she had thrown her goblet of pumpkin juice into his face. Without hesitation, he picked up the nearest food and flung it in her direction. The food fight raged on until Granger waved her white napkin in the air, calling for a truce. They both stared at each other and burst out laughing. They were covered in various types of food from head to toe. She rubbed her shoulder and winced.

"God, Malfoy, you got me pretty hard with that turkey leg." She examined her arm for signs of a bruise.

"I must say, Granger, you've got a damn good arm. That rice pudding got me right in the face." Draco grabbed his napkin and tried to clean off his face. She grinned at him, and to his own surprise, he found himself grinning back.

"Personally, I'm surprised it took us this long to crack." She commented, surveying the damage done to their common room. "Scourgify." She muttered, pointing her wand at the room. It became spotless.

"Yeah, well, Malfoys tend to keep their cool very well."

"Excuse me? Who threw first?" She asked, not managing to hide the laughter in her voice. Draco waved his hand dismissively.

"It slipped."

"Oh yes...of course." She muttered, before picking up a handful of mashed potatoes and throwing them at him. "Gosh, I'm sorry! It slipped." She grinned at him, evilly. He stared at her for a moment before wiping the potatoes off his shirt. He took a few menacing steps towards her, like he was going to attack her. She remained where she was, but fear sparked in her eyes. She gasped when he grabbed her arm and dragged her to the bathroom.

"We'd better get cleaned off. Professor McGonagall is coming at three." Draco said, suddenly remembering McGonagall's meeting. He grabbed the showerhead and extended the neck so he could wash off his arms and legs.

"I'm dirtier than you are, give me the hose!" Granger exclaimed, reaching for it.

"You want it?"

"Yes!"

"Okay." He directed the water spray at her face and she shrieked in surprise.

"MALFOY!" She screeched, trying to back away from the water. Draco couldn't hide his amusement any longer, and he burst out laughing. Soon, Granger had joined in. He pointed the spray back into the bathtub and grinned at the thoroughly soaked Gryffindor.

"So that's your game, is it?" She asked, wiping her face with the bottom of her shirt.

"It is. How will you retaliate?"

"Like this." She reached behind her and snatched her bottle of _L'Enchante _perfume. Relentlessly, she sprayed Draco with the sweet smelling fragrance. Draco tried to wave it away with one hand, but he couldn't escape it.

"Hey! Stop! Granger, knock it- AUGH! I swallowed some! Good God!" Draco coughed and wheezed as he stumbled around blindly, searching for a glass. He found one eventually and filled it up with water. After he had downed five glasses consecutively, he glared at Granger, who had been laughing hysterically for the past five minutes.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Very funny, Granger."

"I thought so." She gasped out between laughs. He turned back to washing himself off. He handed her the hose and went to his room to change. He pulled on a pair of black jeans and an emerald green t-shirt. He paused to look in the mirror and saw that his hair was wet and sticky from the pumpkin juice. He shook his head and ran his fingers through it, but it still looked horrible. Even with sticky hair and the scent of Granger's perfume lingering about him, he still smiled at the thought of her.

Hermione awoke the next morning with sunshine spilling through the window and onto her bed. It felt like the morning she had found out she was Head Girl...only it was better. Now she woke up and remembered _him_. Draco Malfoy was the only thing she could think about, and she couldn't, nor did she want to, fight it. She was late for breakfast, and as she entered the Great Hall, she snuck a glance towards the Slytherin table. The blonde Slytherin was entertaining some of his fellow Quidditch players, who were too frightened to tease him about the incident with Evelyn, when she caught his eye. He gave her a slight wink and a half smile that caused Hermione's heart to beat an extra time. She fought the blush creeping to her cheeks so as not to arouse suspicion from her fellow Gryffindors. Harry and Ron were involved in an animated conversation about Quidditch. _What else is new?_ Hermione rolled her eyes synchronized with Ginny, who was sharing the same thought. Ginny buttered a piece of toast and glanced at Hermione.

"You look tired, Hermione. Late night?" A sparkle in Ginny's eyes made Hermione uneasy, but she managed to remain composed.

"Oh, yeah. I was studying at the library last night." Hermione felt uncomfortable lying to Ginny, but she couldn't just come out and say that she had been cuddling with Draco Malfoy on the couch late at night, while trying to study for their Potions exam. Confusion clouded Neville's face, who was sitting across from the girls.

"I was there last night until midnight. I didn't see you." Hermione bit her lip and felt the blush returning with a vengeance. Ginny watched Hermione with interest.

"I was there...Madam Pince gives me access to a special study room." Her voice shook slightly as she lied to her friends. Neville shrugged and returned to eating his porridge. Ginny, however, continued to stare at Hermione, apparently unconvinced.

"Hermione...you weren't at the library...were you?" Hermione blushed deeply and stuffed a muffin into her mouth quickly to avoid answering. Ginny waited patiently for her to finish, quietly eating her toast.

"Who were you with?" Ginny finally asked. A knowing smile slipped across her freckly face, and her eyes glinted with excitement. Unfortunately, Ron and Harry had stopped talking about Quidditch at that precise moment and decided to enter themselves into the conversation.

"Whoa, wait, what's going on here?" Ron demanded, looking from his sister to Hermione and back again. Ginny opened her mouth to reply, but Hermione stepped on her foot sharply.

"Well- ouch! Nothing." She muttered, reaching under the table to rub her foot. Harry glanced suspiciously at Hermione. She smiled back at him in the most convincing way, but like Ginny, he didn't seem to buy it.

"What's going on, Hermione? You look redder than a blood flavored jellybean." Hermione felt her face growing hot as her blushing steadily increased. Ginny smothered a giggle, and Hermione shot her a warning glare.

"Never mind, Harry." Ron groaned and poked Neville in the side. The unsuspecting Neville jumped a foot in the air, spilling his pumpkin juice everywhere. Ginny squealed and grabbed a napkin to clean off her robes.

"Oy, Neville. A little more grace next time, please. Now what were Hermione and Ginny talking about?"

"Ron!" Hermione exclaimed, horrified. _How dare he ask Neville about a private conversation!_ Hermione fumed on the inside. Ron glanced at her once before going back to Neville. He looked like a cornered mouse, and Hermione silently pleaded with him to not say a word.

"Uh, well, Hermione said she had been in the library last night...but I was there until midnight and I didn't see her." Ron and Harry's gazes shifted to Hermione, who found a sudden fascination with her porridge.

"Well?" Ron looked at Hermione, a hint of accusation in his tone. Hermione put down her spoon and stared at him square in the eyes.

"Well, what?" Ron opened his mouth to speak, but the food disappeared signaling the beginning of classes. Hermione stood up abruptly and rushed out of the Great Hall in a hurry.

It was the last day of classes before the Christmas holiday. The trip to Hogsmeade was tomorrow, but Hermione wasn't planning on going. With the entire school there, she couldn't purchase her friends' Christmas gifts. She had asked Dumbledore for a special visit over the weekend. He had granted her this, and she was growing steadily more excited. The Christmas season was always so much fun at Hogwarts. Humming Christmas carols to herself, she walked into the library to return _The Origin of Potion-Making._ It hadn't been quite as dull as she had anticipated, which was probably good. It had put her to sleep quite a few times, but she had managed to get through it in two weeks. An entire week less than she had predicted. The book had actually been rather helpful. She had added many interesting facts into her most recent Potions essay, and Snape had been reluctant, but he had given her full marks. Deciding that reading up on the backgrounds of every subject she took would be to her advantage, Hermione returned to the Forgettables section. Finally she stumbled across _The History of Transfiguration_ on the bottom shelf. This book was even larger than the previous one, but she decided that with the vacation coming up, she shouldn't have a problem completing it. It wasn't as though she had a busy schedule. As far as she knew, Harry and Ron were staying at the castle. She hadn't talked to them in awhile. Since Harry was captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, and Ron was now their star keeper, they were always talking Quidditch and strategizing for the upcoming matches. It was difficult for her to get a word in edge wise. Hermione had bonded with Ginny this year, and the two girls spent time together studying and just hanging out. Hermione had even brought Ginny back to her common room and they had just chatted. Malfoy hadn't been there, and Ginny had been disappointed.

"He's gorgeous, Hermione! I don't know how you can control yourself!" The red head had exclaimed. Hermione had had a flashback to her walking in on a naked Draco Malfoy. As horrified as she had been, she couldn't help noticing how toned and muscular his body was. Shaking thoughts of Malfoy naked out of her head, she left the library with intent to go read in the common room. Upon entering, she gasped. The room had been decorated for the holiday season with thousands of glittering red and green lights that floated above like fireworks. A large Christmas tree sat in the middle of the room, decked out with intricate ornaments and enchanted candles. The fabrics of the couches and chairs had been altered to reflect the season, and the fire crackled with red and green sparks. Malfoy entered the common room from the bathroom; a fluffy green towel with _Seasons Greetings_ embroidered on it wrapped around his waist.

"Isn't it awesome?" He commented, sweeping the common room with his silver eyes. Hermione was rendered speechless. Between the wonderful decorations and the amazing man standing half naked in front of her, there was no chance of her being able to speak. Instead she just nodded and dropped into a chair upholstered in red. Malfoy left to get dressed and Hermione began to concentrate on her newly attained textbook. She was so absorbed she didn't hear Malfoy enter the common room again.

"Is that your owl?" He asked her, pointing at the window. Hermione glanced up at the brown barn owl.

"No...I've never seen that owl before. Well let him in, Malfoy! He'll freeze!" She exclaimed, getting up. The owl swooped in and delivered a silver envelope to Hermione. Curious, she ripped it open and pulled out a small square of parchment and a silver chain with a small heart. She gasped and stared at it. She shifted her eyes to the parchment.

You have my heart.

"Granger's got a secret admirer." Malfoy winked and gave her a curious half smile.

Draco noted, happily, that the silver heart necklace never left Granger's neck. She'd play around with it, absentmindedly, as she read yet another large textbook. He rolled his eyes at himself. He was letting the Christmas season make him all soft and sappy. Granted, it was getting more and more difficult to excuse his developing feelings for her. He felt like he needed to tell her, but he wasn't just going to come out and say it. No...that wouldn't be good enough. He sighed to himself. He _was_ going soft and romantic. The secret admirer idea had been sheer genius. A brilliant plan that had come to him during a sleepless night of deep thought. He wondered if she noticed that he didn't sleep well anymore. He spent his entire night battling his conflicted heart. Like it or not, Hermione Granger was a mudblood. The type of person Draco had been raised to hate. _But father is dead now. He can't stop me from loving her._ Suddenly Draco froze. Every movement stopped except for the increased beating of his heart. Did he just admit to himself that he loved Hermione Granger? No. No it can't be that serious. She's just another girl. _No she's not...and you know it._ A voice in the back of his mind whispered. Draco flopped down onto his bed in agony. Liking Hermione Granger went against everything he had ever believed. It was foolish to hold a grudge this long, but his fellow Slytherins already thought of him as weak. What would happen to his reputation if he publicly declared his feelings for a mudblood? The speck of his stone cold reputation that still survived would be destroyed. But he would be with her. He glanced at the clock and groaned. It was two o'clock in the morning. He really needed sleep. The next day was the trip to Hogsmeade. He knew that Granger wasn't going. Something about going another time so she could shop for all of her friends. In a way, her plan was better. But Draco had no such problems. He didn't have any friends now. Except for her. But he already knew what he was getting her. And he couldn't buy it in a Hogsmeade store. He had sent Poseidon out with the order forms weeks ago. The owl still wasn't back yet with confirmations. _This is what I get for ordering presents from half way across the world._ He chided himself. Deciding that he would get no sleep, he left his room and settled down on the couch in the common room. Sensing his presence, the fire that had been reduced to smoldering ashes burst into life once again. The sudden burst of light revealed a sleeping figure curled up in an armchair. Granger was fast asleep, her textbook sliding out of her grasp gradually. Grinning at the sleeping beauty, he took the textbook from her hands and placed it on the table. The silver heart around her neck sparkled in the firelight. Draco found himself reaching for the heart, as though trying to get a feel for how she felt about him. His fingers brushed against her soft skin and she shifted in her sleep. Not wanting to disturb her, Draco backed away from her and settled back onto the couch. Looking at her now, all of his worries and doubts melted away. And she was all that was left in the world. He was still staring at her when his eyelids became heavier. Soon, Draco was forced into a sleep filled with nightmares about various doubts and fears his mind held. He awoke in a cold sweat and found himself staring into chocolate brown eyes.

"Are you all right, Malfoy?" She asked, seeing that he was waking up.

"Of course...why?"

"You were whimpering in your sleep." She bit her lip and her eyes sparkled with concern. Draco tried to remember what he had been dreaming about that had disturbed him so. Of course this wouldn't be the first time that he had woken up terrified. The difference was that this time he had Granger to numb the fear.

"Sorry. Bad dream." He explained, rubbing his eyes. Worry remained in her beautiful eyes, but she nodded.

"It's only four in the morning. You can still go back to sleep." She informed him, settling down on the couch in close vicinity to him. He felt his heart give an extra beat and his pulse quickened.

"That's all right. I'm awake now anyway." He hauled himself up into a sitting position, providing her with more room on the couch. A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth as he watched her fingering the silver heart.

"Any more news on your secret admirer?" He asked, already knowing the answer of course. But maybe she would say something interesting about it.

"No...I wonder who he is."

"Who do you think it could be?"

"It could be anyone...as long as it's no one from Slytherin. I doubt it's anyone from that house. No offense." She amended quickly, giving him a smile.

"None taken. I understand what you mean."

"I don't really know many people from Hufflepuff or Ravenclaw..."

"Maybe it's Potter or Weasley." Draco suggested, eager to see her reaction. Her eyes widened slightly.

"No...no it can't be them. Even if it were, I'd have to give this back. I could never jeopardize our friendship like that." Draco was overcome with relief at this. He had had his doubts about where the boundaries of their friendship lie. She glanced at him curiously.

"Why are you being nice to me all of a sudden?" She asked, suspiciously. Draco felt a rush of an unfamiliar emotion spill through him. She was so beautiful sitting there across from him, her soft brown eyes sparkling in the firelight. Her brown hair was messy and uncombed, falling into her face and eyes. The urge to reach out and touch her was becoming increasingly unbearable.

"I could very well ask you the same question." One side of his mouth raised in a half smile as he watched her steadily breathing faster. She was freaking out on the inside, but on the outside she appeared cool and collected.

"But I asked you first."

"All right. I'm being nice to you because you're being nice to me. So now why are you being nice to me?"

"Because I felt bad seeing you upset. I know what it's like to have a broken heart." Her eyes darted to the fire, avoiding his gaze. He moved slowly to cover her small, delicate hand with his. When his hand first touched hers, she gasped and looked into his eyes. He gazed back at her, reassuringly. A sharp rap came on the window and both of them jumped in surprise. Draco suppressed a grin as he saw a barn owl flying outside the window; a red rose attached to its leg. _Earlier than anticipated, but it still works._ He mused and he watched the blushing Gryffindor untie the rose from the owl's leg. Draco had not attached a message. He did not feel the need to after the first gift. After all, if he continued to send her hand written letters, she'd eventually pick up on it. He had tried his hardest to write neatly, and he also did his best to make sure the work he did alongside her was messier. She was, after all, the cleverest witch in Hogwarts. He watched in delight as a smile danced across her lips. In a trance like state, she found a crystal vase that just so happened to be in the center of the long table. _A new addition to our common room that she doesn't seem to notice wasn't there yesterday morning._ Draco chuckled to himself, and her attention settled on Draco. He bit back the smile that was trying so desperately to break free.

"What are you laughing at?" She asked, almost defensively.

"The way your eyes lit up at the sight of a mere flower."

"It's from him. I know it." Draco raised his eyebrows, pretending to be surprised.

"How do you know? There wasn't a note, was there?"

"I just know it, okay?" She replied sharply, but there was gentleness to her eyes. He had touched a soft spot with the rose. He knew it had been a brilliant idea. She gave the rose one last glance, then settled down in an armchair with the oversized textbook.

"Almost done with that one, Granger?" He grinned at her, and was pleased to see her return a smile. The smile went deeper than friendliness...or so he hoped.

Hermione walked into the Great Hall humming Christmas carols to herself. She spotted Harry and Ron eating breakfast at the Gryffindor House table. She felt a twinge of guilt. She never ate breakfast in the Great Hall with them anymore. It was too far of a walk from the Head dormitories. They were on the opposite ends of the castle. And the fact that the house elves served breakfast in the common room wasn't the only reason she stayed. After Malfoy's mishap with Evelyn, no Slytherin gave him the time of day. Hermione felt horribly about it. She felt as though it had been her fault, even though he hadn't listened to her warning. She felt as though she should have made him listen. Harry looked up as Hermione approached and he coughed into his goblet of pumpkin juice.

"Hermione? What are you doing here?" He asked in shock. Ron's eyes widened at the sight of her, and she rolled her eyes at them.

"I'm having breakfast with my friends. Is that all right with you?" Without hesitation, Harry and Ron moved aside so that there was room for Hermione. Malfoy was still fast asleep on the couch in the common room. He had had a rough night. He kept waking up every hour or so, shaking and looking terrified. Hermione wished that she could enter his mind when he slept and make everything that scared him disappear. Every day, she realized that she was caring more and more about Draco Malfoy. It frightened her, but most of all it confused her. Why did she feel this way about him? And what about her secret admirer? Already, whoever it was was capturing her heart. The rose had been a sweet gift. Hermione absolutely adored roses. She had even planted a few herself outside Hagrid's cabin. He had been wary about the sweet smelling flowers for a reason unknown to Hermione. But after they had been planted for a year, Hagrid had told her that they had grown on him. Hermione didn't realize that Harry was talking to her. She was lost in thought, as she always seemed to be lately.

"Sorry, Harry what were you saying?" She asked, apologetically. Harry sighed and rolled his eyes, but grinned and repeated himself.

"Are you going to Hogsmeade today?"

"No. Dumbledore granted me permission to go on a weekend that would be less crowded with students."

"Why?" Ron asked, his mouth full of scramble eggs. Hermione tried not to gag when she replied.

"So that when I buy presents for all of my friends, they won't be right there with me."

"You can just tell us to get lost when you're going to buy something." Ron suggested, taking a swig of pumpkin juice. Hermione winced at his horrible table manners. He should take lessons from Malfoy, who had drastically improved, since Hermione had nagged him about chewing with his mouth open.

"But then you'd know what store I was in, and therefore it wouldn't be a complete surprise. Trust me, it's going to be much more fun this way." She smiled at them both before getting up and leaving the Great Hall. She had barely touched her breakfast, but she decided that she wasn't really hungry anyway. Students were lining up in the entrance hall, preparing to go to Hogsmeade. They were all wearing their heavy cloaks and scarves, dressing warmly to avoid the harsh cold. The front doors were open slightly and the wind that blew into the castle was freezing cold. Hermione shivered and turned quickly to get away from the doors. In doing so, she ran straight into a familiar blonde haired Slytherin.

"I thought you weren't going to Hogsmeade today." He commented. Hermione looked up at him, noticing for the first time how beautiful his icy blue eyes are.

"I'm not. I was heading back to the common room when I ran into you." She fought to keep her heartbeat normalized.

"I'll walk you back there. I don't feel like going either." His eyes darted around the crowd by the door. Hermione noticed his eyes linger on Evelyn, and hate churned through Hermione's body. His hand on her arm melted her hateful thoughts. She fell into step beside him as they trekked back across the castle to their dormitory. Hermione paused at a window to watch the carriages depart for Hogsmeade. She watched them go until the last one had disappeared from sight. Except for a select few miscreants, everyone who was allowed went to Hogsmeade. Especially around the holidays. Hogsmeade was the ideal place to shop for gifts.

"Coming, Granger?" Malfoy asked from behind her. Not realizing he had been there, she jumped in surprise. He nodded towards the stairs and let her begin climbing first. _Whoever said chivalry is dead obviously has not met Draco Malfoy._ Hermione thought, thinking about how courteous he really was. Though he hadn't been nice to her the past six years, she always saw him being rather polite to every other female. After their fifth flight of stairs, Hermione paused at another window. Snowflakes were falling from the gray skies, painting the landscape white. Even more than roses, Hermione loved snow. It was one of her favorite things to watch.

"At this rate, Granger, it will be Christmas by the time we reach our dormitory." He muttered in her ear. His warm breath tickled her neck and she felt a swirling in her stomach. Instead of continuing up the stairs, she turned around and started to walk down them.

"Uh, Granger...you're going the wrong way-"

"I'm fully aware." She called over her shoulder, increasing her pace. Expecting Malfoy to go the other way, she didn't slow down. She reached the entrance hall and proceeded to the doors. She exited the castle, a crisp wind meeting her. Already a thin layer of snow had carpeted the grounds. Disregarding the temperature, she walked out into the middle of the large open field. Snow swirled around her, blowing her cloak and mussing her hair. Snowflakes caught in her hair and eyelashes, and she brushed them away, happily, closing her eyes. _If only a certain Slytherin were here to enjoy this with me._ She thought. Then surprised at herself for even thinking such a thing, she opened her eyes. And there he was. Standing in front of her. Her heart beat an extra time and she smiled at him.

"Are you bloody mad, Granger? It's freezing out here." He exclaimed. She didn't answer him. Just enjoyed for the moment where she was and whom she was with. Her breath was visible in front of her, and her teeth chattered but she hadn't been so happy in awhile. Malfoy pulled out her heavy cloak from underneath his own and handed it to her. She stared at him in surprise.

"How did you know I was coming out here?" She asked. This time it was he who answered with only a grin. She smiled back at him, pulling the cloak over her head. The snow had melted in her hair, plastering it to her cheeks. But she couldn't care less. In a quick movement, Hermione had scooped a handful of snow and thrown it in Malfoy's face. He sputtered and wiped it off, while Hermione laughed at him. He picked up some snow, and Hermione ran away shrieking. He chased after her, laughing. She was tiny and fast, but he was more athletic. Soon he caught up to her and he grabbed her around the waist. They tumbled to the ground, sliding in the slippery snow. Laughing hysterically, neither of them was able to sit up right away. Eventually, Hermione lifted herself off of the ground and brushed the snow off of her cloak. Malfoy found it in him to pull himself up and clean off the snow on his own cloak. Thoroughly soaked and freezing, the two Heads stumbled back up to the castle, slipping and sliding on hidden ice as they went. Inside, the heat burned at their numbed cheeks.

"I c-can't feel my toes." Malfoy commented as they began climbing the stairs once again. Hermione grinned at him.

"Don't be such a wimp, Malfoy."

"You can't tell me that you're not cold."

"Yes I can." He raised an eyebrow in disbelief. "Well I can! I can't feel any part of my body, so I don't know if I'm cold or not." He grinned at her and shook his head. Melted snow flew out of his hair, pelting Hermione with more water.

"Stop it! I'm wet enough as it is."

"I call the bathtub first." He said suddenly. Hermione wanted to smack herself for not thinking to reserve the tub for herself.

"Don't take too long. I might develop a case of the flu if I can't get out of these clothes soon." Malfoy rolled his eyes at her, but she knew that he understood. They entered the common room, which was already warmed by the blazing fire. Hermione sighed in relief and headed to her room.

"I'll only be a few minutes, Granger. I promise." He added, heading into the bathroom. Hermione remained at the doorway to her room. It was the first time Draco Malfoy had ever promised to do something decent for her. She decided that she liked it. Unable to stand her wet clothes any longer, she peeled them off and pulled on her robe. It was warm and black, falling to just above her knees. She settled in front of the fireplace in the common room and waited patiently for Malfoy to finish. She watched the clock, almost curiously. Just as he said, he was done in a few minutes.

"It's all yours, Granger." He said, walking into his room. Hermione gratefully rushed into the bathroom and slipped into the hot tub. She grinned at Malfoy's thoughtfulness. He had emptied, then refilled the tub with fresh hot water. _I'll have to thank him later._

Draco was relaxing on the couch when she exited the bathroom. Her hair was already magically dried. Draco nervously glanced at the window. _That damned owl better get here soon._ He thought, murderously. If her Christmas present didn't arrive on time, he didn't know what he would do. She headed quickly for the door, carrying that huge textbook.

"Time for the next one?" Draco asked her. She grinned.

"Yes. This one was more fascinating than the last one, I think." She headed for the door again. Draco got up quickly.

"I'll come with you." He offered, getting the door for her. She glanced at him curiously, and Draco gave her a reassuring smile. She nodded as if to say 'very well'. Draco shut the door behind them and walked with her to the library. Madame Pince wasn't there.

"Oh dear...I can't check out another book if she's not here." Granger bit her lip, looking disappointed. "Oh well." She sighed, dropping the textbook she had borrowed onto the front desk. She headed for the doors after one more sweeping glance of the library. Draco followed her, walking quickly to catch up.

"I'm sure you'll live, Granger." Draco found that he wasn't very good at comforting her. She gave him a withering grin.

"And I'm sure you'll live without Quidditch as well, Malfoy." She snapped. Draco paused, confused. _What did I do?_ She walked a little faster.

"God, you have some nasty mood swings, Granger."

"Who cares?"

"I do." Draco was out of breath when they finally reached their common room. She had stopped and turned around to look at Draco. He could see suppressed emotions in her eyes. It was almost as though she was unsure if she should care about him as well. Draco wanted to make all of her doubts disappear. He cared about her more than he cared about himself and that was definitely saying a lot. He didn't know if he should tell her that. What if she didn't care about him as much as he did about her? He'd be humiliated and heartbroken for the second time in a month. He wasn't sure if he'd be able to handle it. The only thing that had kept him from doing something idiotic after the incident with Evelyn was Hermione. Losing her too would be too much for him. He'd have nothing else to live for. Wondering if he should tell her this, he glanced up at the ceiling. Hanging innocently above the doorframe was a giant sprig of mistletoe. He stared at it in disbelief. He was standing with Hermione Granger, directly underneath a branch of mistletoe. _God, now what do I do?_ She followed his gaze and her eyes also widened at the sight of it. He lowered his gaze to meet hers, and she blushed. _Why destroy tradition?_ He wondered, beginning to smile at the girl in front of him. He inched closer to her, taking her face in his hands. His lips brushed against hers, tentatively. Then more forcefully. Soon her arms were around his neck and his were surrounding her waist. As if realizing for the first time what they were doing, they pulled apart in surprise. Both of them stared at each other in silence, not sure of what to do next. Finally, Hermione spoke.

"Good night, Draco." She disappeared quickly, but Draco was smiling. She had called him Draco.


	6. The Gift

Chapter Six:

The Gift

Draco woke up the next morning after a solid night of sleep. He felt so rested and so alive, he didn't mind that he ran his toe into his desk as he moved towards his dresser. He pulled a black t-shirt over his head and stepped into a pair of muggle jeans. Hermione would probably like them, he decided. Their kiss the previous evening was relived over and over in Draco's dreams. He had awoken with a smile. He couldn't remember the last time he had had such a wonderful sleep. And for that matter, he couldn't remember the last time he had felt such chemistry when he kissed someone. She definitely knew what she was doing, but she held an aura of innocence that made her so intriguing. Hoping that he'd see her in the common room, he ran his hands through his hair and left his room. The sky was still gray, and more snow covered the grounds. It looked like it was about to begin snowing again, but Draco didn't mind. No, he definitely appreciated snow after yesterday. Unfortunately, the common room lacked the Head Girl. The fire was crackling warmly in the fireplace, and some breakfast dishes had been dirtied. Sighing, he realized he must have missed her. Her being a morning person had bothered him at first. On some occasions, her bustling about the common room had woken him up. They had had words about it. But now it bothered him for an entirely different reason. He had been looking forward to seeing her. The moment he closed his eyes the night before he couldn't wait to open them again the next morning. The moment he opened his eyes this morning, he couldn't get out of bed fast enough. In fact he had gotten tangled up in his blankets and had crashed to the floor. But his efforts were futile. She was no where in sight. Disappointed, Draco wandered aimlessly out of the dormitory. His thoughts brightened when he saw the library on his right. Thinking that she must be in the library, Draco barreled through the doors, attracting attention from everyone in the library. Madame Pince gave him a harsh glare, but remained silent. Draco didn't even care. He set off towards the Forgettables section, praying that he would find her there. Rounding the corner, he held his breath, sending up one final prayer. He exhaled with disappointment when he saw that the section was vacant. Even more depressed than before, Draco left the library and wandered down to the Great Hall. He poked his head inside to see if she was there, but only found more frustration. Ready to give up, Draco began climbing the stairs to their empty common room. Pausing in the middle of the second staircase, he doubled back to the window.

"Of course!" He muttered to himself. _Why didn't I think of it sooner?_ He chided himself angrily. He bolted down the staircases and flew out of the front doors. A gust of icy wind greeted him, but he ignored it. Glancing down at the snow, he noticed her small footprints heading towards the lake. He quickened his pace and traced the imprints, finally pausing where they stopped. He raised his eyes from the snow to her beautiful face and grinned.

"Good morning." He greeted her, his breath visible in the cold atmosphere. She offered him a timid smile and shifted her gaze to the Forbidden Forest. The snow weighed down the tree branches, the lowest ones nearly scraping the ground. Draco felt uneasy. _Did I do something wrong?_ As if sensing the doubt in his mind, Hermione's eyes sought his again. A reassuring smile crossed her lips.

"Where did it come from?"

"Where did what come from?" Draco asked, confused. Her eyes sparkled.

"The mistletoe. Did you put it there?" She asked, grinning more widely.

"No. I was just as surprised as you were." Draco replied. He was being truthful. He had no idea that there had been mistletoe in the doorway. But he was certainly thankful to who ever put it there.

Hermione wandered down the streets of Hogsmeade. A fresh layer of snow was falling around her and her cheeks were flushed with the cold. Inside she was thoroughly happy. Kissing Draco had been amazing. Never had she felt such passion. They hadn't advanced on their new level of friendship. The only changes were shy smiles when they saw each other in the halls and more laughter and comfort when they were in the common room at the same time. Otherwise, it was as though nothing happened. Hermione was almost to the end of the strip when she spotted a curious little shop to her left. Squished between two much larger stores sat a tiny shop with the title _Intricacies _in gold letters on the door. Intrigued, Hermione stepped out of the cold and into the shop. There were hundreds of shelves lining the walls, and they all contained detailed figurines. Some moved, some spoke, but many were stationary. In fact, if it weren't for the odd shapes of magical creatures, one wouldn't know that they were magical productions at all. Moving slowly, Hermione examined every trinket carefully, not wanting to miss a single detail. By the last shelf, Hermione was slightly disappointed. She had hoped to find something for Draco, but everything was too elaborate, too expensive, or just not his style. The very last item on the shelf made Hermione grin. It was absolutely perfect. A simple silver ring with a green snake slithering through the polished surface.

"Pretty thing, isn't it?" A raspy voice came from behind her. She jumped in surprise, nearly knocking things off of the shelves. An old little man with stringy gray hair and dull gray eyes grinned toothlessly at her. She shifted uncomfortably but cleared her throat.

"How much is it, sir? There's no price tag." The man laughed a wheezing sort of chuckle and starting coughing hard. He grasped a flagon of fire whiskey from his cloak and took a long pull.

"That there's an antique. Believed to be worn by Salazar Slytherin himself." Hermione didn't like the sound of that. It must be incredibly expensive.

"It's expensive then?"

"More than your whole life, darlin'." He looked at the ring with reverence.

"How can I pay for it? Without money, I mean."

"You mean you want to pay in favors?" The man eyed her curiously. Hermione bit her lip, not sure of what she was about to do. But it was for Draco.

"Yes, sir." The man looked thoughtful for a moment.

"Well, darlin', I'll tell you what. Come back sometime before April and clean up the shop. All these trinkets and things will be dusty and won't fetch a decent price. They need a thorough cleaning every four months or so."

"I'll do it, sir. You have my word."

"No tricks now, darlin'. You look like a fine young lady, so I don't think I'll have a problem trusting you."

"You won't, sir. Thank you very much." Hermione held out her hand to shake. He grasped it firmly and grinned toothlessly. Then with great care and veneration, he lifted the ring off of the shelf and carried it over to the large wooden desk. Hermione watched with interest as he went about the process of wrapping the ring in emerald green cloth and placing it in a well-cushioned black marble box. Finally he handed it to Hermione and grinned.

"I'll see you in the future, miss."

"You can count on it, sir. Thank you." She offered him a smile and left the little shop. She sighed thinking about how much work it would be to clean every single trinket in the shop. It had taken her hours just to look at every figurine. But she smiled at the little black box. Draco was going to love it. She almost couldn't wait to see his face. Satisfied with the shopping she had accomplished at Hogsmeade that day, Hermione headed back to the carriage Dumbledore had generously provided. Once at the castle, Hermione hurried up the stairs to the Head dormitories. She didn't want Draco to see her enter with her gifts. He might want to see what she had purchased. Inside the common room, she was relieved to find it empty. She crossed the room quickly and went into her room. After placing the other gifts on her bed, she picked up the black box and tucked it carefully away in her bedside dresser. When she reentered the common room, Draco occupied the couch. He glanced up from the book he was flipping through when she entered.

"Did you have a productive morning?" He asked her, moving to make room for her on the couch. She accepted his invitation and sat down. Realizing she had been walking around Hogsmeade for hours, she appreciated sitting down more than she anticipated.

"Very. But I'm completely exhausted." She sighed, staring into the fire. Maybe she'd just wrap herself in a blanket and sit in front of the fire all day. _That's not such a bad idea._ She decided.

"So what are you up to now?" Draco asked, turning his attention back to his book.

"I think I'm going to spend the rest of the day in front of the fire, relaxing."

"Sounds wonderful."

"Yes it does...did you want to join me?" Draco looked up at her, grinning.

"Aren't we already sitting in front of the fire together?"

"Well I was going to change into my pajamas and get some hot cocoa before settling down. You're welcome to join me if you'd like." She elaborated, standing up to do what she had planned.

"I'd love to, but I still have to finish Sprout's essay on the reproduction and raising of liptoads."

"That essay was due before vacation."

"I know. That's why I need to finish it." He winked at her before concentrating on his reading again. Hermione rolled her eyes and went to change. When she emerged from her room wearing a silk sapphire nightgown, Draco was gone. Shrugging to herself, she pulled her hair out of a French braid and let it fall to her shoulders. The hot cocoa she had ordered from Dobby had appeared on the table and she picked it up on her way to the couch. She covered the couch with soft, fluffy throw pillows and sat down. She had never felt more comfortable in her life. She closed her eyes and imagined what Draco's face would be like when he opened her gift. It was, without a doubt, the most perfect Christmas present he would receive.

"What are you thinking about that is making you smile like that?" Draco's voice interrupted her thoughts suddenly. Her eyes flew open and Draco's face was only inches away. He was kneeling on the floor next to the couch, wearing a pair of black sweat pants and nothing else. Left breathless by his sculpted upper body and sinewy muscles, all Hermione could do was gape and blush. He watched her curiously, a sparkle in his eyes that said he was used to the reaction but it never got old.

"Nothing. I'm just very content this morning." Hermione struggled to say. Draco flashed her a handsome smile.

"Can I be content with you?"

"I thought you needed to finish your essay."

"Oh I see...you don't want me intruding upon your relaxation time. I understand." He got up to leave, but Hermione grabbed his arm quickly.

"Stay." She exclaimed. He looked down at her and one side of his mouth lifted in his sexy half smile.

"You're sure you want me to?" He asked, dropping to his knees in front of the couch once more. His gaze was level with hers, and he was only inches away. His face turned serious and he edged closer.

"Yes." She replied in a whisper, begging him to kiss her. And he did. Gently, as if teasing her. Then he kissed her again with deeper passion.

"Wait...Draco..." She protested, pulling away. "Maybe we shouldn't do this." She began to second-guess. Draco looked at her with disappointment, and she felt her heart melt instantly. She reached for her wand on the end table and muttered an incantation. The mistletoe that was hanging in the doorframe floated over to them and levitated above their heads. Draco grinned and took it as an invitation to kiss her once more. His fingers slid over the silky fabric of her nightgown, raising goose bumps on her skin, but igniting fires underneath. Somehow, her fingers entangled themselves in his blonde hair, turning Draco on. He deepened their kisses, licking at her lips to gain entry to her mouth. Approving entry, Hermione's tongue tangoed with Draco's. Eons later, they pulled apart, out of breath. Draco's lips were red and swollen from ardent kisses. His hair was sticking up in all directions, but Hermione decided that he looked cute that way. He was breathing heavily, his muscular chest rising and falling with heaving breaths. Hermione, herself, was attempting to regulate her breathing patterns. Draco flashed her a grin.

"Was it as good as you dreamed it would be?"

"I haven't dreamed about this." Draco raised an eyebrow.

"Oh come on, Hermione. I've seen you eye me."

"If I admit that, then you have to admit that you were looking at me as well."

"I can't even begin to deny that. But I'm a guy. It's instinct."

"Oh that's flattering." Hermione was slightly wounded at his statement. It was obvious that Draco could see the hurt in her eyes, because he raised himself onto the couch and caressed her cheek with a long slender finger.

"Hermione, you're beautiful. More beautiful than any girl I've ever seen. I couldn't deny that if I tried."

"You denied it for six years."

"I never really saw you until this year. Beauty isn't just sparkling eyes, smooth skin, and feminine curves." He gave her that sexy half smile that melted her bones.

"That's something I never thought I'd hear from the lips of Draco Malfoy."

"I'm not that shallow, Hermione."

"Say my name again."

"Why?"

"Just do it. Please."

"Hermione." She smiled at the sound. It sounded so wonderful coming from him. She wanted to listen to him whisper her name over and over for the rest of her life. He grinned back at her and brushed his lips over hers lightly. A sharp rapping on the window jarred them both back to reality. Draco recognized Poseidon hovering outside the glass; a heavy parcel attached to his leg.

"Finally!" Draco muttered, rushing over to the window and letting the black owl fly inside. He lacked grace as he landed with a thump on the couch next to Hermione. Draco thanked god that her present was wrapped. He untied it quickly and brought it into his room. She was going to love it. When Draco reentered the common room, Hermione was stroking Poseidon gently. Poseidon seemed to be enjoying himself immensely.

"Your owl is adorable, Draco." Hermione cooed. Poseidon nipped her finger affectionately. Draco raised his eyebrows.

"He's never taken to someone so fast. He doesn't even like me." Draco grumbled, almost jealous of his stupid bird. Hermione kissed the owl on its beak, and it hooted happily.

"All right, all right, get out of here." Draco rolled his eyes, scooping up Poseidon and throwing him out the window. Hermione laughed lightly.

"Are you jealous of your owl, Draco?" Draco whirled around.

"Are you bloody mad? Of course I'm not."

"Don't worry, Draco. Your owl might be adorable, but he can't possibly kiss as well as you can." She grinned at him, her eyes sparkling.

"Damn straight." Draco grinned back, kissing her briefly. He glanced at the mistletoe still floating above their heads. He wondered if as long as the mistletoe was there he still was supposed to kiss her. Hermione was staring at him, as though waiting. Draco lowered his gaze to look at her.

"Well...what are you waiting for?" She asked, with mock impatience. He smiled at her before sweeping her into another fervent kiss.

Draco awoke on the couch with a sleeping Hermione in his arms. He closed his eyes and smiled. He had spent the most wonderful afternoon of his life laughing, talking, and kissing with Hermione Granger. He would have never seen it coming. He noted the mistletoe still above their heads and he pressed his lips to her forehead. She stirred and stretched out. Her eyes blinked open and she caught sight of him.

"Did we fall asleep out here?" She asked, sleepily.

"Apparently."

"Then we are in violation of over five school rules." She sat up quickly. Draco rolled his eyes. _Once a Gryffindor, always a Gryffindor._ Then she turned back to Draco and kissed him so suddenly, he was caught off guard. Shock wore off and passion took over. He smiled through the kiss. She pulled away, eyeing him curiously.

"What?"

"When are you breaking the news to Potter and Weasley?"

"News?"

"You just spent the night kissing and cuddling with your hated arch nemesis."

"Oh I forgot about that..." She murmured, sounding suddenly upset. Draco wanted to slap himself for bringing it up. "I can worry about it later, right?" She said, suddenly. Draco grinned and nodded, pulling her towards him again. After awhile, the pair retreated to just sitting in each other's embrace, staring into the fire. Hermione's head rested on Draco's chest, and she listened to his heart beating irregularly fast, but in tempo with her own. Draco's fingers made lazy circles on her side, as he just enjoyed her presence. Breakfast suddenly appeared on the table and Draco felt his stomach rumble. Hermione laughed.

"You're hungry too?"

"Starving. Kissing makes me hungry." He teased her, kissing the tip of her nose. She pushed a throw pillow into his face and left the couch. He followed her, almost as though there was a magnetic attraction. Now that he had experienced what it was like to be near her for extended periods of time, he wouldn't be able to be alone.

"So Christmas is tomorrow. When should we exchange gifts?" Hermione asked, buttering a piece of toast.

"What makes you think I got you anything?" Draco asked, with mock repulsion. Hermione gave him a serious stare and he broke into a smile. "Fine. Let's meet for dessert since we're required to attend dinner in the Great Hall."

"Dumbledore made it mandatory?"

"I think Heads are required to attend holiday feasts."

"I guess I should go anyway. Harry and Ron are going to start wondering if I died."

"Are you going to tell them about us?"

"That all depends. Are we making this relationship of ours public?"

"Only if you want it to be. We both have a lot at risk if the whole school knows."

"True. Let's keep it classified then. I won't tell Harry or Ron for as long as I can hold out. I won't be able to lie to them if they ask me directly, though."

"How do you think they'll take it?"

"Horribly." Hermione grinned. It was the bitter truth, but they both knew it. Draco reached across the table and grabbed her hand.

"They'll have to live with it. I'm not going anywhere."


	7. What My True Love Gave to Me

Chapter Seven:

What My True Love Gave to Me

Early on Christmas morning, Draco woke up. He felt like a little kid again. Instead of longing to open presents, he couldn't wait to give presents. Well, specifically he couldn't wait to give Hermione her present. He glanced at the wrapped parcel and grinned. Then he pulled on a dark green robe and entered the common room. Candy canes floated in mid-air amongst hundreds of lit candles. The breakfast table was piled with more food than Draco could eat...and that was a lot. His stomach grumbled hungrily but Draco forced himself to sit down on the couch. He would wait for Hermione, like a gentleman. He kept sliding glances at the smorgasbord. His stomach gave a grateful lurch when Hermione entered the common room. His heart leapt as well.

"Happy Christmas, Hermione." He greeted her. She smiled at him.

"Happy Christmas, Draco. You look hungry."

"No...not really..." Draco lied. She raised an eyebrow. "Fine. I'm starving, what took you so long to wake up?"

"My apologies, Mister Malfoy." She swept into a low bow. Draco grinned. He knew she was being sarcastic, but he liked the sound of 'Mister Malfoy' from her lips.

"Forget it. Now let's eat." Draco waved it away carelessly. She straightened and sat down at the table.

"Whatever you say." There was far less conversation while they were eating. Neither of them paused from their feeding frenzy to say anything. When finally they had both eaten their fill, Draco slumped down in his chair.

"Why didn't you stop me, Hermione?" He moaned, feeling suddenly sick.

"I could ask you the same, Draco." Hermione replied, closing her eyes tightly. Draco decided that he had gone too far with the tenth croissant. But he decided too late.

"I'm going to get changed. Meet me back out here."

"Why?"

"We're going outside."

"To do what?" Hermione asked, glancing out the window. Tiny snowflakes were falling, adding to the thick layer of snow already present on the ground. Draco winked at her and walked back into his room. He put on the warmest clothing he had and made it waterproof. He waited for Hermione in the common room and glanced at the tree. Under the lowest branches were several parcels. Upon closer inspection he noted that all of them were for Hermione. From Potter, Weasley, Hagrid, her parents...Draco had none. Sighing to himself, he tried to think of something else. He knew Hermione had bought a present for him. She had agreed to dessert after the Christmas dinner feast so that they could exchange presents. Just thinking about the Christmas dinner feast made Draco's stomach lurch very unpleasantly. Hermione entered the common room with her hair piled on top of her head and a smile on her face.

"Let's go." She almost dragged Draco out of the common room, pausing for a moment under the mistletoe to kiss him gently on the lips. They barreled down the stairs and out of the front doors. Everyone they passed stared, curiously. Almost oblivious to the fact that other students were staring at them in disbelief, they talked and laughed as if they were alone. Once outside, Hermione squealed as an arctic breeze hit her in the face. She ran into the middle of the grounds and flopped down in the snow. Draco watched her with curiosity and a smile. She pushed away the snow using her arms and legs and then she stood up carefully so as not to ruin what she had created. Grinning, she beckoned Draco over to see what she had made.

"What is it?" Draco asked, staring blankly at it.

"It's a snow angel! See?" She exclaimed, drawing a little halo with her foot. She looked so proud of her creation, Draco had to laugh.

"I'd like to see you make a better one!" She exclaimed in a challenging voice. And who was Draco Malfoy to refuse a challenge? Draco did what he had seen Hermione do, as she stood to the side smothering laughter. He did a less graceful job of getting up without ruining his snow angel.

"You stepped on the wings!" Hermione pointed out his footprints. Draco rolled his eyes in mock annoyance.

"Everyone's a critic." He grumbled. Hermione laughed and pushed him playfully. Caught off guard, Draco stumbled in the snow, slipped on some hidden ice and crashed to the ground. Hermione collapsed into giggles, but threw herself down next to Draco in concern.

"Are you all right?" She asked, breathlessly, trying not to laugh.

"Oh...my head..." He moaned.

"I'm so sorry! Did you hit your head? Are you all right?"

"God...I can't see anything. Hermione...where are you?"

"I'm right here, Draco. I'm going to go get Madame Pomfrey-"

"Don't."

"Why not? You're hurt!"

"No I'm not." Draco cracked a grin. Hermione looked relieved, then angry.

"God, Draco, why did you do that? I was scared out of my mind." She got up and started to walk away. Draco leaned forward on his knees and grabbed her hand, jerking her back. She fell on top of him, pushing him into the snow. Their faces were mere inches apart, and Hermione's anger seemed to melt away. Taking advantage of the moment, Draco closed the gap between their lips. Forgetting that they were in the middle of an open snowy field where they were in plain sight, Draco's arms went around Hermione's waist, pulling her closer to him. Hermione was the first to realize the dangers of what they were doing.

"Draco, someone might see." Draco was too impassioned to care, and he leaned forward to capture her lips in another kiss. She pushed him away gently.

"Come on, Hermione, I don't care. This is way too romantic to end." Draco pleaded with her. His blue eyes pierced through her, making it harder for her to refuse. Tossing a quick glance over her shoulder at the castle, she smiled.

"One more."

"Just one?" His lower lip trembled and Hermione sighed.

"That's not fair, Draco!" She exclaimed, trying not to look into his irresistible puppy dog eyes. She failed. "Damn you." She whispered, her lips claiming his forcefully. Draco could taste her hunger and felt his own rising steadily. He traced the sultry curves of her hips with his fingers and deepened their kiss. When the first snowball hit, Draco didn't even notice. The second one beamed him in the head and he broke off the kiss abruptly. He turned his head to see Evelyn packing another snowball.

"So this is how a Malfoy deals with rejection? He takes on a mudblood whore?" She smirked at Draco. He watched a spark of fury ignite in Hermione's eyes.

"Shove it, Evelyn." Draco spat, cutting off Hermione, who was undoubtedly about to go off into a rant. Evelyn sneered at Draco, tossing a snowball between her hands.

"Won't the Slytherins be proud to see that their king has lain with a mudblood?"

"I haven't lain with anyone."

"Come on, Draco. Everyone knows about your reputation. Even I know."

"Exaggerations." Draco clarified, knowing that Hermione was slowly becoming skeptical of his intentions.

"Possibly...but I doubt it. And what about you, mudblood? What will your friends say? You were supposed to be Draco's arch nemesis, were you not?"

"You're not going to tell them, are you?" Hermione demanded, a trace of fear in her tone. Draco winced. Evelyn would feed off of that fear.

"I haven't decided yet...perhaps I'll let you suffer with your guilt a little longer."

"Bitch." Hermione hissed under her breath. Draco prayed Evelyn hadn't heard, but her dark eyes narrowed into slits.

"Watch your tongue, mudblood. This could ruin both of your lives. Your fate is in my hands." She smirked at them both and turned her back. Before Draco knew what was happening, Hermione was on her feet and tackling Evelyn from behind. Getting over the initial shock, Draco jumped up and ripped Hermione away from Evelyn. Hermione had managed to get in a solid punch. Evelyn's nose was crushed and bleeding. Draco saw the fury in Evelyn's tearing eyes and he grabbed Hermione's hand.

"Hurry, let's get out of here." He whispered, dragging her towards the doors. They didn't stop running until they were safely inside their common room. Hermione flopped down onto the couch and covered her face with her hands.

"I can't believe I just did that."

"Of the two of us, Hermione, I think I am the one who is more shocked." Draco kept replaying the incident in his head. It was just as good in his mind.

"I hit Evelyn."

"No...you _decked_ Evelyn." Draco corrected her, grinning. Noticing that he wasn't making her feel any better, he resorted to the never fail method. He kneeled down next to the couch and gently pulled her hands away from her face. He kissed her fingertips lightly, watching desire burning in her eyes. _Any moment now..._ He waited, patiently. Just as he had predicted, seconds later, she leaned forward and kissed him hard. He was almost surprised at the pent up passion he felt when he kissed her. It always seemed like she had been waiting for years to kiss him, instead of just ten minutes. But it didn't bother him. When she kissed him like that, she did things to him. She constantly reminded him that she was not just some girl. She was definitely something special. Something he could not risk losing. For if he lost Hermione, he had nothing left in the world to live for. After pondering it for some time, Draco decided that he needed to tell her what he was feeling. He stopped kissing her and looked deep into her eyes. _Now or never._

"Hermione...I love you."

There were only twenty students who remained in Hogwarts, including Hermione, Draco, Harry, Ron, and Evelyn. Dumbledore had set up a large table to seat all twenty for the Christmas feast. There were a few extra places for professors who chose to dine in the Great Hall. Most teachers, though, went out of the castle to celebrate Christmas day. Hermione was still in shock as she was preparing to go down to dinner. Her hands shook slightly as she put on a pair of white gold earrings. _Draco loves me..._ She ran over the words in her mind over and over again. After he had spoken those words, Hermione had frozen. Part of her wanted to throw her arms around his neck and kiss him. But another part of her was scared. She was treading on unstable grounds. She had been involved in relationships before, but none of the boys she had dated had ever told her they loved her. After all, Draco was only eighteen. How could he know if he was really in love with her? All of her doubts had forced her to excuse herself from the common room, saying that she needed to finish an essay. Both she and Draco knew perfectly well that she had finished all of her assigned essays the first day of the Christmas holiday break. Regardless, he had let her go without saying anything. She felt horrible about just leaving him there like that. Ever since she had left him, she had started considering how she felt about him. There was no doubt in her mind that she cared about him as much as she cared about Harry or Ron. But did she love Draco in a different way? Frustrated, Hermione flopped down on her bed. Tears threatened her eyes, but she blinked them away. Her heart was beating so harshly, it started to throb. Glancing at the clock on her bedside table, she groaned and sat up. She needed to finish getting ready. She stepped into a pair of dark blue jeans and white sneakers. Pulling a red v-neck sweater over her head, she left her room to go into the bathroom. Her prayers were answered. There was no sign of Draco in the bathroom or the common room. _He must have already left._ A tear left her eyes and rolled down her cheek. She had expected him to wait for her to walk down. _Maybe he's mad at me._ She thought, a horrid feeling growing inside of her. Fighting to stay calm, Hermione combed out her hair and fixed it in a sloppy bun. Lip-gloss was the only make up she felt like putting on, and thinking that her appearance would have to do, she left the dormitory. Her footsteps echoed, pounding in her ears. Heavy snow was falling outside and she sighed. _Life isn't making this any better._ She thought bitterly. When she reached the Great Hall, she pasted a smile on her face so Harry and Ron wouldn't suspect.

"Happy Christmas, Hermione!" Ron exclaimed, rising from his chair to give her a hug. Harry gave her a hug as well when Ron had eventually let go.

"Happy Christmas, Hermione. I love the mini model Quidditch field for strategy planning!" Harry beamed at her. Hermione smiled back. She knew he would love it.

"I thought you would, since your team captain and all."

"And Hermione, where did you find Procrastination Preventer?" Ron asked, inquiring about his gift.

"Hogsmeade. I imagine you will be turning your essays in on time now."

"How thoughtful of you, Miss Granger. I'm sure Mr. Weasley is very grateful." McGonagall commented from the dinner table. Ron's ears turned pink and Hermione grinned. She took a seat in between Harry and Ron, only discovering for the first time that Draco was seated across from her. Their gazes touched for a moment, but Hermione turned away nervously, not wanting to see the anger in his eyes. She busied herself with her napkin while Harry and Ron chattered away.

"You know, I sat in between you two so that I might be involved in your conversation. I'm still lost." Hermione interrupted them.

"Oh. I thought you sat in between us so you didn't have to sit next to Malfoy." Ron shot a glare in Draco's direction. Draco pretended not to hear and he seemed suddenly fascinated with the design on the plates. Hermione felt a wave of sympathy sweep over her.

"Knock it off, Ron. He hasn't said anything to you." Hermione defended Draco, making the blonde Slytherin look up from his plate. Ron gave her an odd look, but shrugged. When Hermione dared to look up at Draco, he was staring at her. He gave her a slight nod of thanks, and she smiled slightly in return.

"First of all, I'd like to say Happy Christmas to all of you. Thank you for joining me for a Christmas feast." Dumbledore rose from his chair. "Second, I hope you've all enjoyed your holiday break while it lasted." Hermione's eyes found Draco before she realized what she was doing. A sadness filled her. She had had an amazing time, spending every moment she could with Draco. But it was going to be over in a few days. And then they would go back to homework filled nights and Draco would be practicing the Slytherin Quidditch team again in the afternoons. They would barely have any time left to just sit in front of the fire again. _Not that he would want to anymore._ She reminded herself.

"Now, please enjoy the feast." Dumbledore concluded, and the serving plates filled with foods. Hermione was reminded of how much she had eaten in the morning, and wisely chose small portions of everything. Harry and Ron made efforts to include her in their conversations, but soon Hermione realized she didn't really feel like talking. Draco was silent the entire dinner, even though Pansy was chattering on right next to him. As soon as she had finished, she excused herself quickly. Harry and Ron stared after her, worriedly, but decided that she had probably been reading too much in one day. Draco looked up as she left. His heart left with her. When he had told her what he felt, she had just stared at him. He couldn't read the emotions in her eyes, but he knew, with a sinking heart, that when she left she was really saying that she didn't love him back. He had managed to make it to his room before crying. Malfoys don't cry often. It wasn't in the character of a Malfoy. But Draco had cried twice in a short period of time. The first time he had cried, it was more anger and frustration. Now when he cried over Hermione, he felt like he should be dead. He began looking around for the quickest way to kill himself. After ten minutes of twirling his fork absentmindedly through his food, he finally stood up and excused himself. In the entrance hall, he paused. _Maybe Hermione doesn't want to exchange presents anymore._ The thought occurred to him and tears sprang to his eyes. A tiny voice of hope in the back of his mind forced him to go up the stairs to the dormitory. When he saw the common room empty, he wanted to throw himself out of the window. The wrapped box under the tree for Hermione mocked him. He picked it up, wondering whether or not he should destroy it. _Actually, I feel more like destroying myself._ Ultimately deciding that a fall from the North Tower would be more painful and deadly, Draco turned and left the common room, still clutching Hermione's gift in his hands. The door to the North Tower was slightly ajar, and he slipped through it cautiously. A figure was sitting where he had been sitting the night he wanted to kill himself over Evelyn. He glared at the dark figure. Whoever it was had stolen his spot. He began to approach the person when they spoke.

"I thought you might come here."

"Hermione? What are you doing up here? It's late and awfully cold." He exclaimed, noticing that she was still wearing what she had worn to dinner. He knew she was freezing.

"I wanted to give you your Christmas present. I thought you would head up here. I guess I was right."

"As always." Draco felt a grin tugging at the corners of his mouth. She slipped off the wall and walked towards him. Hands, reddened from the cold, passed him a small black marble box.

"Happy Christmas, Draco." She murmured softly, turning around and lifting herself back onto the wall. Draco placed her present on the wall next to her.

"This is for you as well." He watched her eyes fill with tears. He hoped that they were tears of happiness, like his. Through his blurry eyes, he managed to open the small black box. Nestled in the middle of an emerald cloth was a silver ring with the image of a snake slithering across the surface, almost like it was swimming in a silver lake. For the first time in Draco's life, he was rendered speechless. If he wasn't mistaken, and he wasn't, this ring was rumored to be worn by Salazar Slytherin himself. Marveling in the beauty of his gift, he failed to notice that Hermione was opening his gift. With a peek into the box, Hermione gasped in delight. She lifted it out of the box to get a better look. It was a large snow globe with a silver base. Inside the globe were two little figures, one was a tall boy with blonde hair and wearing green robes. The other was a brown haired girl wearing red robes. When she shook the snow globe, the tiny little figures scurried about the snowy grounds, making snowballs and throwing them at each other. Tiny sounds of laughter emitted from the two little people. Hermione grinned at the gift. She raised her eyes to look at Draco, and he stared back at her. They both asked the same question at the same time.

"Where did you get this?" Simultaneously deciding that they didn't really care, they both tried to speak again. At the same time.

"I'm really-"

"I wanted to-" They both broke off, smiling.

"You first." Draco said, taking a seat on the wall next to Hermione. She paused for a moment and bit her lip.

"No...you go first." Draco looked as though he wanted to protest, but decided against it. Sighing happily as he glanced down at his ring, he began.

"All right. I'm sorry about how I reacted today. I realize that maybe you don't feel the same way about me. The moment felt right to tell you exactly what I was feeling. I shouldn't have ignored you this afternoon. So I just wanted to apologize for that. One more thing...how did you afford this? It's like a priceless chunk of history."

"I'm paying in favors."

"Favors?" Draco asked, anxiously. He didn't want anyone taking advantage of Hermione. If he had to, he'd bring the ring back.

"I offered to clean the entire shop."

"I'll come and help you if you'd like."

"It's your present, Draco."

"I don't care. I want to see where you managed to find it." Draco replied. What he said was true, but the real reason he wanted to go was to make sure that she'd be safe. Paying in favors wasn't the smartest way to go, but he knew that she couldn't afford the ring with just money.

"Now what did you want to tell me?" Draco asked, feeling a little down. She was probably going to tell him that she didn't want to see him ever again. Maybe telling her how he felt wasn't the way to go.

"First of all, I want to thank you for your gift. It's perfect in every way. I'll never forget this moment for as long as I live."

"You're welcome. I hoped you'd like it."

"I love it, Draco, thank you. But what I really wanted to tell you is related to what you said." _Here it comes._ Draco thought, sadly. "When you told me that you loved me, I didn't know what to do. I hadn't really thought about how deeply my feelings ran for you. Not until you told me how deep your feelings went. No one has ever told me that they loved me, besides my family of course. But I wasn't sure how I should react. I spent the rest of the day thinking about how I really felt. The thing is Draco, my mind is on one page and my heart is on another. You knew as well as I do how much we loathed each other for the past six years. At the beginning of the seventh year, it looked like it was going to be the same thing. My mind has been wary, saying that what I'm doing is stupid and deceitful. My heart has been elated. You know me, Draco. I have always been one to place logic before my emotions." Draco felt his heart sinking. Suddenly he felt her slide closer and place her hand over his. "Not this time." She whispered gently in his ear. Draco lifted his gaze to meet hers.

"I love you, Draco." She whispered, kissing him softly. Recovering from the initial shock, Draco pulled her towards him and deepened their kiss. _She loves me? She loves me!_ He thought over and over. Through their kiss, Draco smiled happily. It was Christmas Day, he had received the best Christmas present of his life, and Hermione told him that she loved him. And it was snowing.


	8. Turbulence

Chapter Eight:

Turbulence

After Hermione had revealed her feelings for Draco, the atmosphere seemed to change for the better. It seemed to her like they were officially in a relationship the first time they consciously decided to kiss. Now it was like their relationship had escalated to the next level. Classes had started again, and teachers were assigning more homework than ever. Hermione didn't even care. Not in the slightest. More homework meant more time with Draco. He had started scheduling Quidditch practices again every afternoon. By the time he came back, his cheeks were red and his hair dripped with a mixture of sweat and snow. It was the snowiest winter season Hogwarts had ever seen. Hermione saw it as a good omen. Since Draco came in just before dinner, he had to work on his homework afterwards and late into the night. Hermione, who spent all afternoon on her homework, assisted Draco with his homework. She wasn't going to let him copy her work, but he never asked her to anyway. Homework sessions ran late into the night mostly because they took frequent breaks to drink some hot chocolate or curl up in front of the fire. On a particularly late session, Hermione was lying in Draco's arms.

"Draco?"

"What?"

"You were sleeping again." She grinned up at him and he kissed her forehead.

"Come on, Mione. I'm exhausted."

"Then go to bed."

"I haven't finished my Charms essay."

"We can finish it tomorrow during breakfast. You don't have much more to do." Hermione replied easily. She was tired as well, but she knew Draco was about to faint from exhaustion.

"Oh all right."

"You're working yourself too hard, Draco."

"Am I?" He groaned, shifting so he could lie down on the couch. Hermione adjusted her own position to lie down next to him.

"Yes. Maybe you should lighten up on Quidditch practices."

"The team needs the practice. We'll be humiliated if I don't whip those pathetic Chasers into shape. The keeper needs some work too."

"Maybe you're working them too hard. At least shorten the practices."

"I'll tell you what, Hermione. Come to the practice tomorrow and see for yourself." Hermione paused at the invitation. What if Harry or Ron was to see her?

"I don't know, Draco."

"Just for a few minutes. That's how long it will take for you to see that the team is pathetic." Draco pressed. Hermione sighed. As long as she just stopped by for a few minutes she wouldn't have to worry about getting caught by Harry or Ron.

"Won't the team members get suspicious?"

"Breathe, Hermione. A lot of people come to watch us practice. They distract the team though. But it gives them all a mental boost."

"Don't you mean a lot of girls go to watch you practice?" Hermione asked in a slightly accusing tone. Draco sighed.

"Yes, but the rest of the team doesn't know that."

"How could they not?"

"Because they're idiots."

"And you're not?" She grinned at him. Draco was almost hurt by the insult, but her sparkling eyes reassured him that she was only joking.

"Of course I'm not!" He replied, pompously, making Hermione laugh. "So will you come?" Draco asked again, looking straight into her eyes. As always, Hermione melted.

"Oh fine. I'll bring some homework with me."

"I wouldn't have it any other way." He winked at her, subtly making fun of her dedication to her schoolwork. She picked up on it, but was too tired to care anymore. Yawning, she sat up on the couch.

"I'm going to bed. See you in the morning." She headed for her room, teetering slightly from exhaustion. Draco watched her disappear, warm contentment spreading over him. His icy personality was melting. Just yesterday, he had accidentally knocked into a Gryffindor and their books went everywhere. He had _apologized_, and even worse than the apology, he had helped the girl pick up her books. Hermione was changing him. More drastically than his father ever could. His father...if his father could see him now, there would be hell to pay. Not just for him, but for Hermione too. It was times like these when Draco was grateful that his father was gone.

Hermione stepped into the cold and pulled her cloak tightly around her. It was snowing hard, and the winds whipped through her hair and stung her face. Harry and Ron had looked at her like she had grown another head when she had told them that she was going outside to do some homework.

"Hermione, are you bloody mad? It's like a bloody blizzard out there!" Ron had exclaimed.

"I'll be fine, Ron. I like the snow."

"But it's bloody vicious out there!"

"Stop saying bloody. It's okay, Ron. I feel like I need some fresh air." She had expressed the thought with finality. She had rushed out of the Gryffindor common room quickly so neither of them would have the opportunity to stop her. Ron had been right. The weather was vicious. But she had promised Draco that she would come to the Quidditch practice. Shivering, she started towards the Quidditch pitch. Blurs of green shot across the sky. Teeth chattering, Hermione sheltered herself behind the bleachers. It blocked the wind and the snow, but gave her a poor view of the field. Glancing around, she noticed that Draco's fan club was missing. Moving underneath the bleachers, she finally found a place where she could see most of the Quidditch field. As she watched the team play, she understood what Draco meant. On the rare occasion that the Chasers successfully completed a pass, they missed all three hoops miserably. Hermione spotted Draco hovering near the Keeper, making grand gestures with his arms. She bit her numb lip and shivered violently. Flying away from the Keeper, Draco approached the Chasers and spoke to them for awhile. Finally, Draco blew a whistle and flew higher to watch from above. This time, the pass was completed and the throw towards the hoops was more accurate. The keeper managed to knock it away, but he almost fell off his broom in the process. Draco shouted out words of encouragement, then a different strategy. Hermione found it sort of fascinating to watch Draco work with his team. They did seem to get better by the time Draco had called everyone to the ground. He gave them a quick post-practice talk, then sent them towards the locker rooms. Draco lingered behind for a moment, glancing around the stadium. Hermione knew he was looking for her, and the look of disappointment that came over his face when he didn't see her, was devastating. Half-running underneath the bleachers, Hermione hurried towards the locker rooms. When she finally emerged from underneath the stands, Draco was a few steps ahead of her. Scooping up a handful of snow, Hermione beamed him in the back of the head with a firmly packed snowball. He turned around sharply, his stare murderous. When he saw Hermione, he grinned and tackled her to the ground.

"Where did you come from? I didn't see you in the bleachers."

"I was underneath the bleachers. It's bloody freezing out here." Hermione replied, her teeth chattering making it harder to speak. Draco's eyes filled with concern.

"Damn, Hermione, you shouldn't have stayed the entire practice. You'll get sick."

"No I won't."

"Yes you will. Now get back in the castle. I'll meet you in the common room." He directed, standing up and helping Hermione to her feet.

"That's all right. I'll wait for you."

"No you won't. Get inside the castle." His tone held no room for questioning or back talk. Sighing, Hermione turned and started back towards the castle. He grabbed her arm and spun her back around to give her a quick kiss on the lips. Feeling suddenly warmer, Hermione did as Draco asked, and went back inside the castle. The warmth that greeted her frozen body burned through her. Running her hands through her hair, she pulled out clumps of ice and snow. Rolling her eyes, she threw her hair up into a messy bun before continuing up to the common room. She changed out of her wet clothes, putting on navy blue sweat pants and a huge gray sweatshirt. After ordering a kettle of hot chocolate from Dobby, Hermione settled down in an armchair. There was a knock on the common room door, and Hermione frowned. Why would Draco knock? Opening the door, Hermione's good mood evaporated.

"What do you want?" Hermione glared at Evelyn.

"I want you to dump Draco."

"What?" Hermione thought she had heard wrong. But a sinking feeling inside of her knew that she hadn't.

"It doesn't work this way, mudblood. When I break up a tough guy, he's supposed to stay broken."

"I don't understand you, Evelyn. Why would you do that to someone who hasn't done anything to you?" Hermione demanded, her anger rising.

"It gives more sort of an odd pleasure. I get to watch men drool and get all soft over me. Then when I leave them, I get to watch their pitiful attempts to win me back. Some of them even commit suicide. Truth be told, I was expecting Draco to kill himself after I left him." A nasty sneer crossed her lips, and Hermione felt her fists clench.

"Bitch."

"No, mudblood. You're the bitch. You stopped him from jumping off of the North Tower. I saw you. I was there."

"What?"

"I knew you were going to stir up trouble when you came back the second time to make sure he was going to come back to the common room. He was about to jump you know."

"And you were just going to stand there and watch him kill himself?" Hermione exclaimed, infuriated. "You're bloody mad!" Evelyn grinned evilly.

"If I had a galleon for every time I've heard that. Well anyway, you need to dump Draco. Soon."

"Absolutely not!"

"I think you'll want to." Something dangerous flashed in the Slytherin's violet eyes. Hermione felt a surge of fear rush through her blood. _What is she going to do to me? Blackmail?_ She certainly had enough shit on Hermione to blackmail her. Another thought occurred to her.

"Why do you want Draco dead?"

"I have my reasons."

"What can you possibly gather from his death?"

"More than you can even imagine, mudblood. Dump him, or I can guarantee that you will regret it." She gave Hermione one more penetrating glare before leaving. Hermione remained in the doorway, slightly shaken up. When Draco appeared, Hermione felt a rush of pain. He grinned at her.

"Just standing in the doorway waiting for me? You shouldn't have!" He leaned forward to kiss her, but she stopped him.

"Listen, Draco, we need to talk about something." His face went serious, and Hermione felt her chest tightening.

"What's wrong?" He asked, immediately.

"Evelyn wants me to dump you."

"Why?"

"I-I don't know." Hermione looked at the floor, not wanting to tell Draco that Evelyn wanted him dead.

"Are you going to?" He asked, softly. Hermione heard the pain and devastation in his voice, and she felt like crying.

"No." She replied firmly. Whatever Evelyn would do to her could not be worse than seeing Draco destroyed.

"Then why is it a problem?" Draco asked, blinking the tears away from his eyes. Hermione wanted to stop and hug him until the world ended.

"She said she was going to do something to me if I didn't." Draco looked speechless, and eventually he pulled her into his arms and hugged her tightly. Hermione struggled to keep tears from falling. The only thing that scared her was that she didn't know what Evelyn was capable of.

"We'll get through it, Hermione. Whatever she does, we'll get through it." Draco whispered in her ear. Hermione tried to tell herself that everything would be all right, but she wasn't sure if she truly believed herself.

Hermione closed her eyes and opened them again. It was still there. Evelyn was flirting with Ron. And being the weakling that he was, Ron was practically drooling over her. Hermione fought the strong urge to go over and break them apart. She'd scream some sense into Ron, and beat the crap out of Evelyn for even daring to seduce her best friend. Her body tensed up when she sensed someone behind her.

"So this is her game." Draco muttered, followed Hermione's gaze.

"I thought that this was just between her and me. Ron has nothing to do with us."

"We need to stop her."

"How?"

"Ron has had a crush on Lavender for years, am I right?"

"How did you know that?" Draco grinned.

"It wasn't that hard to figure out. Anyway, get Lavender to ask Ron out."

"And then Ron won't be drooling over Evelyn anymore. Draco, you're brilliant." Hermione exclaimed, brushing a kiss across Draco's cheek before jumping up to go find Lavender. She found her sitting with Parvati.

"Lavender, could I have a word?" Lavender glanced up at Hermione in surprise.

"Sure." She replied, following Hermione to an empty table. "What's up?"

"Well, Ron has been asking about you lately."

"Really?" Lavender blushed slightly and a grin slid across her face.

"Yeah. He's wanted to ask you out, but he thinks you'll say no."

"Why? I'd definitely say yes!" Hermione bit her lip to keep from grinning too widely.

"Maybe _you_ should ask him." Hermione suggested. Lavender paused.

"Maybe I will. I'll ask him today after Transfiguration." Hermione grinned and looked past Lavender to give Draco a thumbs up.

sorry it's really short. It wasn't really my best chapter, but I swear the next one will be better! Thanks for your reviews!


	9. Black Roses

Chapter Nine:

Black Roses

Draco remained on the couch. Hermione wasn't awake yet, but it was still very early. Poseidon had been rapping on his window at three in the morning. Bothered and sleepy, Draco had let the owl in. One glance at what the owl was carrying, and his heart stopped. He was on his way to wake up Hermione when his legs wouldn't support him any longer. He collapsed onto the couch, still grasping what Poseidon had delivered. The sun began to come through the windows, and Draco glared at it. He was in no mood for a sunshiny day. Hermione entered the common room, but he barely heard her.

"Good morning, Draco. What's wrong?" She asked suddenly. Then she saw them. "Oh no." She whispered, sinking onto the couch next to Draco. "Come here." She pulled Draco into a hug and he wasted no time in beginning to sob on her shoulder. After crying until his eyes started to burn, Draco pulled away from her and sighed.

"I'm going to go clean up." He muttered, heading for the bathroom. Hermione picked up the parchment left on the couch.

Dear Draco Lucius Malfoy,

We are regretful to inform you that Narcissa Malfoy passed away late last night. Her funeral will be held next Saturday, if you would like to attend. In addition, the reading of her last will and testament will follow the funeral. We are very sorry for your loss.

Hermione felt tears coming to her eyes. _Poor Draco._ She glanced at the black roses. It was customary to send black roses with death notices. She couldn't even imagine how horrible it would be to receive one. Draco returned from the bathroom and sat back down on the couch.

"I'll have to go and speak with Dumbledore. Tell him that I'll be leaving for the weekend." His voice was dull and weak. Hermione didn't know what to do. Didn't know what she could do. Finally she came up with an idea.

"I'll go with you."

"What?"

"I'll go to the funeral with you."

"No, I couldn't ask you to do that."

"You don't have to. I want to come, Draco." Hermione took his hand, comfortingly. He glanced up into her eyes and sighed.

"All right...if you really want to."

"I do." She replied confidently. "Let's go talk to Dumbledore." As she was standing, Draco pulled her back down.

"It's five o'clock in the morning. You think he's going to be awake?" He offered her a small smile, which made Hermione feel better.

"Of course he will be. Let's go." She pulled Draco to his feet and they left the common room, heading for the Headmaster's office. Outside the gargoyle statue, Hermione paused.

"What's the password?" She whispered, more to herself than Draco. The gargoyle stirred and stared at Hermione suspiciously.

"Why are you up here at this ungodly hour?"

"We need to speak with Professor Dumbledore. It's very important."

"Not without the password."

"Oh, pish posh." Hermione groaned. The gargoyle leapt aside, letting a very surprised Hermione and Draco pass.

"Nice guess, Hermione." Draco commented as they climbed the spiral staircase leading to Dumbledore's office.

"Thanks, it was nothing." She replied, entering the office. It was empty. The only movements came from Fawkes, who was stretching out its wings. He eyed them skeptically as Hermione approached him.

"Hello Fawkes...do you know where Professor Dumbledore is?" She whispered to the Phoenix. Draco sighed.

"Hermione, do you really think that a bird is going to tell us where Dumbledore is?" Just then, Fawkes spread his wings and flew out of the window. Hermione frowned and looked around.

"It was worth a shot." She shrugged and headed back towards the door. Draco was about to follow when there came a soft pop.

"Hermione? Draco? What are you doing up this early on a Sunday?" Professor Dumbledore asked, shocking Draco. Fawkes flew back in the window and rested on his perch, giving Draco a smug glance.

"Draco got a letter, sir." Hermione replied, nudging Draco gently. Draco gave the letter to Dumbledore and stared at the floor as he read it.

"Oh dear. I'm very sorry, Draco. If you are asking for permission to leave next weekend, then it is granted. I shall arrange transportation immediately."

"Thank you, sir." Dumbledore's gaze shifted to Hermione.

"I suppose you will be going as well?"

"How did you-" Hermione began, but Dumbledore silenced her with a finger and a soft chuckle.

"Did you think that this would go by unnoticed by me? Most of the staff knows as well. Did you begin to wonder why Professor Snape has been pairing you both up together in Potions?" Hermione was surprised to hear that more people knew about her and Draco than she had imagined. Draco seemed bewildered as well. Dumbledore chuckled again.

"You surprised us all, I'll tell you that. Even Professor Trelawney couldn't see this. Only one teacher seemed to know it was bound to happen."

"Who, professor?" Hermione asked curiously.

"Professor Vector, your Arithmancy professor." Hermione was floored.

"Professor Vector?"

"Yes. She had proposed the idea in your fourth year. Everyone laughed at her for it, too. I supposed she is the one laughing now." It suddenly clicked to Hermione when she thought about Arithmancy. Vector had always partnered them up for assignments and reports. Dumbledore smiled at them both.

"It is a pleasant turn of events, I must admit. Anyway, I shall speak with you both when travel arrangements have been made. You will stay for the whole weekend, I presume?" Draco nodded in response. "Very well, then. You two might want to go get some sleep. You haven't been looking well Hermione. Might I suggest not watching Slytherin Quidditch practices under the bleachers in blizzard conditions?" Hermione didn't say anything. Her mouth just hung open in surprise. Dumbledore winked and disappeared with a pop. They remained stationary and in silence for awhile.

"He scares me when he's like that." Draco finally spoke. Hermione laughed and nodded in agreement. They started down the stairs to return to their common room.

"Do you think- never mind." Hermione stopped, dismissing the idea.

"What?"

"Never mind. It was a stretch."

"Tell me anyway."

"Do you think that somehow..."?

"Evelyn is connected to this?" Draco finished her thought. She nodded, regretting bringing it up. Draco sighed.

"I'm sorry, Draco. I know you don't want to think about this."

"No, it crossed my mind as well. But I don't think it would be possible for her to murder my mother." His voice hardened as he progressed through his statements. Almost to their dormitory, they bumped into Professor Snape.

"Malfoy and Granger...what are you two doing out of bed so early?" He glanced between them. Hermione bit back a smile as she remembered Snape's matchmaking attempts in Potions.

"We needed to see Professor Dumbledore." Draco explained in a tired voice. Snape eyed them both suspiciously, but continued on his way without another word.

"You should try to get some rest, Draco." Hermione suggested quietly when they had entered the common room. Draco sighed. He couldn't sleep. Even if he tried. Hermione seemed to understand this, and she grasped his hand. Draco's eyes shifted down to her face. Her eyes held comfort and solace, the two things he needed the most. He felt like he had the night he had been contemplating suicide on the North Tower. Swaying in and out of a sane mind. He felt like he wanted to crash to the floor and stay there forever. But a deeper look into Hermione's eyes, and he knew he couldn't leave her. He wouldn't allow himself to give up on her when she had given him a reason to live so many weeks ago. She would still be the only thing standing between him and death. With nothing else to do, Hermione stepped closer to Draco and wrapped her arms around him. And Draco, who wanted nothing else at the moment, hugged her as tightly as he could without crushing her fragile body. Feeling warm and comforted for the first time that morning, Draco came to the realization that he could not live without her. Deciding that now was not the time to profess his undying love, he remained silent, hanging on to his lifeline, his love.

The days crept slowly by. But as slow as they seem to have gone, Hermione felt like Friday had came quickly. Faster than she liked. It pained her to see Draco so completely devastated. He wouldn't be much better at the funeral. He had also asked that she be present at the reading of his mother's will. She couldn't refuse. Draco had been on the verge of tears every time he looked at her. When she asked him why, he pulled her close and held her for a moment.

"You remind me so much of my mother." He had whispered in her ear. Ever since he had uttered those words, Hermione felt like if she wasn't around, then Draco wouldn't be reminded of his mother. But another part of her screamed out that Draco needed her now more than ever, regardless of what she reminded him of. Dumbledore was waiting for them after dinner Friday night.

"I have provided you with a carriage. If you gather your things and leave by nine o'clock, you should arrive around midnight." Dumbledore spoke to Draco, who nodded somberly. Packing in the dormitory was silent. Hermione wasn't sure if Draco wanted to talk or not. She decided it was best for silence to remain, just incase. Draco wished that he could go back in time and stop everything from happening. He wished with all his being that he could stop Evelyn from happening. That he could have seen sooner what a beautiful person Hermione really was. That he could have been with his mother, and possibly stop her death from occurring. But everything had already been done. Etched in stone. Permanently.

"Have a safe trip. And Draco, I am truly sorry." Dumbledore murmured sadly to Draco. He felt tears welling up in his eyes, but he fought them back and climbed into the carriage after Hermione. The carriage was more spacious than it looked from the outside. The seats were really beds equipped with pillows and blankets. Hermione touched Draco's hand gently.

"Try to sleep, Draco." She whispered. Although Draco wanted to tell her that he wouldn't be able to sleep at all, he nodded and settled himself. She sat on her bed and watched him carefully. He noticed her eyes closing for short periods of time, then opening quickly as though she had been shocked. He thought it was really nice how she stayed up to make sure he was all right, but Dumbledore had been right. She didn't look well.

"You need to sleep too, Hermione." He offered her a weak smile. She returned it and reluctantly slipped under the blankets. It only took a moment for her to slip away.

Draco woke up when the carriage shuddered to a halt. Peering out the window, he saw the towering mansion that was his home. Like an old fashioned castle, a murky moat surrounded the building. It was more of a swamp; home to mysterious magical creatures that Draco used to capture when he was younger. Before the horrors of his father's rage. Glancing over at the sleeping angel across from him, his darkened thoughts dissipated. He touched her arm gently, and she stirred.

"Are we there yet?" She whispered, groggily. Draco smiled weakly.

"Yeah. Let's get inside." He clambered out of the carriage, into the bleak winter night. The large clock tower showed midnight exactly. Hermione had retrieved their luggage, but Draco wouldn't allow her to carry his bag to the house. Draco opened the massive oak door and stepped inside. Fire jumped onto the torches that surround the entrance hall. The house was cold and silent. And empty. Just as it had always been. Leading the way, Draco ascended the stairs and approached his room. Though there were plenty of spare rooms, all of the doors were locked, and Draco didn't have the keys.

"I'll sleep on the couch." Draco offered, moving towards the small, springy couch. Hermione grabbed his arm.

"You need a decent night's sleep. I really don't mind." She spoke confidently, leaving no room for argument. Sighing, Draco collapsed onto his king size bed and sunk under the covers. Hermione slipped in next to him and yawned.

"Good night, Hermione." Draco whispered.

"Good night, Draco." She murmured back. Then in a barely audible whisper, she added, "I love you." For the first time in five days, Draco smiled.

Draco remained in the cemetery hours after the funeral. He stared blankly at the patch of ground that covered his mother's body. It seemed as though there were no tears left for him to cry. The marble was cold when he ran his fingers across the tombstone. A snowflake fell onto his hand and melted. Remembering that Hermione was still with him, he turned around. She was watching him sympathetically, dressed in an elegant black tunic. When their gazes touched, Draco felt a twinge of happiness. Deciding that he had spent enough time at his mother's gravesite, he walked towards the only person he had left to live for. She grasped his hand comfortingly, sending waves of warmth through his body. When they had reached the mansion, a burly man with thin brown hair was waiting in the parlor. He greeted Draco with a strong handshake, and nodded at Hermione.

"Draco Malfoy, I presume?"

"Yes, sir."

"My name is Nigel Tennason. I am here to read you your family's will."

"Isn't it just my mother's will?"

"It would be. If your father was alive. But the family will is something drawn up by both of your parents." Draco stopped himself from rolling his eyes. Odds were good that his father had written the family will all by himself. Lucius often said that Narcissa was incapable of doing everything but being a good wife and mother.

"I see." Draco motioned for Hermione to sit on the couch next to him. "Please proceed." He watched as Nigel broke the Malfoy seal.

"I, Lucius Malfoy, and my wife, Narcissa Malfoy, have these wishes to be fulfilled by our only heir, Draco Malfoy."

"Excuse me, sir, but I am the only living heir?"

"That is correct, Draco. You are the only living Malfoy heir." Floored by the unexpected news, Draco glanced at Hermione to see her reaction. Her eyes were wide and her mouth slightly parted.

"Among other assorted possessions listed below, Draco also is to receive the entire Malfoy fortune and Malfoy Manor." Draco couldn't believe what he was hearing. His parents had left him every bit of their wealth. At eighteen, Draco was the richest wizard in the world. Hermione had gasped when she heard what he would be receiving. She glanced over at Draco, who seemed to think that it was too good to be true. By the time Nigel had finished reading the family will, Draco was in complete shock. He couldn't move.

"You're bloody rich." Hermione muttered, looking around at the room that Draco now owned.

"I'm bloody overwhelmed." He replied, massaging his temples. Feeling suddenly drained of energy, he kicked off his shoes and stretched out on the couch. He rested his head in Hermione's lap and stared up into her eyes.

"Thank you."

"What for?"

"God, where do I begin? For being here. For caring. For comforting me."

"No problem, Draco. I wouldn't rather be anywhere else." The clock above the fireplace struck five, and Draco's stomach grumbled hungrily. Realizing that the chefs were off for the weekend, Draco guided Hermione to the kitchen.

"What should we make for dinner?"

"You can cook?" She stared at him in surprise.

"Can I cook? Of course I can cook! Now give me that white scrapey thing over there. The long thing with the-"

"You mean a spatula?" Hermione asked, holding it up, grinning at him. His face relaxed into a grin as well, and it felt amazingly wonderful.

"Yeah, that. And give me that thing with all the holes."

"A cheese grater?"

"Yeah."

"What are you making?" She asked, passing him the grater. He glanced down at the cookbook on the counter in front of him.

"I have no idea." Hermione laughed and moved around the counter to look in the cookbook. She flipped through it and stopped on pasta primavera.

"This is easy to make. Tell me what we need, I'll get the stuff." Hermione ordered, tying an apron around her waist. Draco read the list out loud and Hermione scurried all over the kitchen, gathering ingredients and cooking supplies. Forgetting for the first time why he was at Malfoy Manor during the school year, Draco laughed with Hermione as they attempted to cook pasta primavera. When they finally finished, they argued over who should take the first bite.

"It was all you, Hermione. You did everything, I just stood here."

"So? It's your house. Your food. You eat it."

"Come on! Just take one bite."

"It's not like I poisoned it, Draco." Hermione winked at him, trying to push a forkful of pasta towards his mouth. He dodged it, falling backwards into a cabinet. A bag of flour knocked over and spilled over Draco, covering him in white powder. Hermione collapsed into a fit of laughter and had to grasp the counter to keep from falling over. Draco shook some of the powder out of his hair and wiped it away from his eyes. He glared at Hermione and tossed some flour in her direction. Her laughing stopped immediately. It was Draco's turn to laugh. When the flour fight had ended and the kitchen was spotless, Draco finally agreed to take the first bite. He chewed for a moment, then his eyes widened. Hermione bit her lip.

"Is it good?" She asked carefully.

"It's awesome! Hermione, you are amazing."

"You helped." Draco rolled his eyes and shoved a forkful of their creation in Hermione's mouth. She grinned.

"You're right. I am amazing." She winked at him, and he grinned.

"Hermione...I wanted to ask you something."


	10. Draco Therapy

Chapter Ten:

Draco Therapy

"You really didn't have to come help me." Hermione gave Draco a sideways glance as they headed back towards the carriage Dumbledore had generously provided.

"I know, but you understand why I would be cautious about paying in favors."

"Well you got to see for yourself that it was on the level." Hermione grinned at him smugly. He rolled his eyes.

"Yes, _and_ I got to clean various trinkets for an entire day."

"It was your choice." She reminded him as she climbed into the carriage. He plopped down onto the seat next to her and put his arm around her shoulders.

"How could I pass up a day with you?" He kissed her cheek. She smiled to herself and glanced down at the ring on her left hand. She could remember it clearly. After the flour fight, after the taste test of their pasta primavera, he had asked her to marry him. She had never been more shocked, but at the same time, she had never been happier. Upon their return to Hogwarts, she had sent her parents an owl about the news. They had written back their congratulations and approval. It was a month since Draco had asked her, and Harry and Ron still didn't know. Hermione was unsure of how to approach them. She couldn't just go up to them and tell them that she was engaged to their archenemy. Draco could see that she was having trouble letting her friends know, and he felt bad that he couldn't do anything for her. As they drew closer to the castle, Hermione spotted Harry and Ron sitting by the lake, obviously waiting for her return. She sighed heavily, working on another excuse to feed them about why she was out with Draco.

"What's the lie this time?" Draco asked, noticing her dilemma.

"Head business."

"Are you sure that they're going to buy that one? You've used it quite a few times."

"This may come as a shock, but they're not that bright." Hermione replied, jumping out of the carriage and heading towards her friends. They looked up and grinned at her.

"Hey Hermione. How was Hogsmeade?"

"Boring. Malfoy and I had to listen to a lecture." She lied quickly. She was definitely getting better at lying to her friends. Not a skill she was particularly proud of, but one she was forced to frequently use.

"I'm starting to feel horribly for you, Hermione. You have to spend so much time with that fleabag." Ron glared at Draco's receding figure.

"It's not so bad. We mostly keep to ourselves now."

"You let us know if he does anything to you. Harry and I will-"

"Wait, what is that?" Harry interrupted Ron suddenly.

"What?" Hermione asked, looking at Harry. His gaze was fixed on her left hand. A sinking feeling developed in her stomach. Ron followed Harry's gaze and his mouth fell open.

"Hermione...are you engaged?" The back of her throat turned to sand. She glanced at Ron's bewildered face, then at Harry's. Sensing that it was finally time, she sighed. As she opened her mouth to reply, the clock in the courtyard rang out three chimes.

"Bloody hell, it's time for pre-game practice!" Harry exclaimed, jumping up. He grabbed Ron's arm and they muttered quick good-byes to Hermione before running off towards the Quidditch field. Hermione sighed with a mixture of relief and disappointment. The sooner they knew, the better, but she still didn't want to think of what their reactions would be like when they did. She sank onto the bench and looked up at the sky. It was an ominous gray and a brisk wind nipped at her cheeks. Shivering, she joined the throngs of students that were heading towards the Quidditch pitch. Spotting Ginny, Hermione dashed over to sit with her.

"Hey Hermione. How was Hogsmeade?"

"Boring. So what have you been up to?" Hermione asked, eager to change the subject. Ginny eyed her suspiciously.

"I know you, Hermione. When you change the subject quickly it means you don't want to tell me something. What happened in Hogsmeade?" The red head asked again, a sly grin gracing her lips. Hermione bit her lip, trying to conjure up an excuse, but she was running out of options. The excuses that satisfied Harry and Ron would never soothe Ginny. As Hermione was about to lie, Ginny gasped.

"Is that an engagement ring?" She squealed, pointing to the diamond ring on Hermione's left hand. Instinctively, Hermione pulled the sleeve of her cloak up to cover her hand.

"No." She lied. Ginny looked wounded.

"Hermione, I know you've been lying to me. I've let it go for now, but I can't let you lie about something as big as an engagement ring." Hermione bit her lip. She should have expected Ginny would be the first to figure it out.

"Ginny...I don't want to lie to you. I just don't think that Harry or Ron would accept the truth. I know you're dating Harry, and you're Ron's sister. I wasn't sure that you would be able to keep my secret. I'm sorry." Hermione apologized, looking down at her feet.

"I promise I won't tell them, Hermione! Please, just tell me who is your fiancé?" Ginny pleaded with Hermione. The little red head looked so eager and excited, Hermione couldn't turn her down.

"You swear you won't breathe a word to anyone?"

"I swear Hermione. Who is it?" Hermione bit her lip, knowing that it was now or never. And maybe if she told someone, she'd be stronger when she had to face Harry and Ron. Taking a deep breath, she uttered his name with a slight smile on her lips.

"Draco Malfoy."

"WHAT?" Ginny shrieked, attracting attention from surrounding Gryffindors. A blush crept into Hermione's cheeks as she elbowed Ginny sharply. Eventually, the other students returning to their socializing. Ginny took a few deep breaths and stared at Hermione.

"Did you say Draco Malfoy?" She asked, her eyes as wide as dinner plates.

"Yes. We've been getting to know each other for a while now. He asked me to marry him last month."

"You went an entire month without telling anyone?" Ginny exclaimed, furiously.

"Well I told my parents."

"I meant you didn't tell Harry or Ron for an entire month? Don't you think they deserve to know?"

"I know they deserve to know, but I haven't found the right time to tell them."

"I don't think there's going to be a right time. Whenever you tell them, they're not going to be happy about it."

"Ginny, you swore you wouldn't tell anyone."

"I know...I know." She muttered, staring into the stands adorned in green and silver.

"Gin...are you mad?" Hermione asked, softly. The red head continued staring silently across the pitch. Then she slowly turned to look at Hermione.

"So tell me...does he kiss as well as he's supposed to?" She grinned widely at Hermione, who smiled back.

"Even better."

It was a Gryffindor victory over Ravenclaw. Harry and Ron had been beaten up and rosy cheeked when the match was finally over, but they were happier than ever.

"Come celebrate with us, Hermione! We're having a party in the common room!" Ron exclaimed, wiping some blood away from his nose. He had taken a bludger to the face at the beginning of the match. Hermione was about to say yes, but a sudden dizziness came over her. Her insides went suddenly cold, but her skin was hot.

"Hermione? Are you all right? You're looking kind of pale." Harry's voice sounded miles away. The last thing she could remember before the blackness was Draco sweeping her into his arms as she fell. She awoke in her bed. Draco was sitting in a chair next to her, and when he saw her eyes flutter open, he jumped up.

"Are you all right?" He touched her forehead gently. "You're burning up."

"I feel horrible." She choked out.

"Madame Pomfrey thinks it's the flu. She said it usually catches you by surprise like that." Draco went on, dipping a washcloth into cool water and placing it on her forehead.

"One minute I was standing, and the next-"

"You were falling. I had fun explaining myself after I practically dove onto the ground to keep you from hitting your head." He chuckled softly and ran his fingers across her face. "Weasley was convinced I jinxed you from behind." Hermione managed a weak grin.

"That's Ron." She whispered. Without realizing, she began fiddling with the ring on her left hand. Draco watched her and smiled.

"I saw you tell Ginny about our engagement. How did it go?"

"As well as can be expected. Ron will be worse."

"I could talk to him if you want."

"That will only make it worse." Hermione sighed. This was something she had to do alone. She didn't know if she was strong enough, but it still had to be done.

"I'll let you get some rest now."

"No...stay." Hermione requested quickly. Draco settled onto the bed, placing her arm around her shoulders. She rested her head against his chest and closed her eyes. The steady beating of his heart calmed her, and it almost made her forget that she was pushing a 103 fever. His fingers traced lazy circles on her arm and he let his head drop on top of hers.

"Thank you for saying yes." He whispered after a moment.

"Did you think I wouldn't?" She asked in surprise. He shrugged gently.

"There was always a chance that you'd say no. I don't know what I would have done if that had happened."

"Speaking of me saying no, we haven't heard from Evelyn in awhile."

"I know...I don't like it." Draco narrowed his eyes, thinking dark thoughts about the dark haired Slytherin who was trying to take Hermione away from him. She couldn't do that. She couldn't take away anything that was his, and Hermione was definitely his. The diamond engagement ring on her finger was proof of that.

"I think she was bluffing, Draco."

"I don't. She's a Slytherin. She knows what she's doing."

"I didn't want to tell you before, but she has a strange fixation with seeing you die. I was trying to figure out why, but I can't begin to fathom why she would want something like that." Hermione said, quickly, feeling guilty about keeping it to herself for so long. Draco frowned. He didn't like this at all.

"What could she gain from my death?" Draco pondered aloud.

"I asked her the same thing."

"You did? Well what did she say?"

"She said something like, more than you think. It was really weird and vague." Draco ran a hand through his hair.

"Sounds like she's a psycho with a motive." He began to think more strenuously, and soon he was miles away, trying to come up with a logical explanation.

"Don't worry yourself about it, Draco. She hasn't approached either of us for a while, so she was probably trying to scare us. Maybe she realized what an awesome guy you are, and decided that she wanted you back." Hermione teased him, then started coughing.

"I'm really going to leave now. You need rest." Draco got up and helped her adjust her pillows so she'd be comfortable. With a gentle finger, he brushed strands of hair off of her face.

"If you want anything, just call. I'm not going anywhere." She nodded and snuggled underneath the covers. Draco took one more glance at her over his shoulder and smiled. _Mrs. Hermione Malfoy._ Well it wasn't the most flowing name, but it sounded beautiful to him all the same. He stayed in the common room for the rest of the day incase Hermione needed something. He didn't give Evelyn's threats another thought, spending all of his time thinking about Hermione. He was going to make sure that she got better, and he would give her anything she wanted so she could feel better. Hell, he'd give her whatever she wanted, period.

Hermione woke up with a sweeping wave of nausea. Although she was weak, she gathered the strength to stand up and hurry to the bathroom. Upon seeing her enter, Draco rushed into the bathroom after her. He got there in time to pull her hair back away from her face as she threw up into the toilet. When she had finished, she was shaking and ghostly pale. Draco carefully washed her face, whispering words of comfort as he went. He swept her into his arms and carried her back to her room.

"Next time just let me throw up. You're going to end up getting sick too." She murmured, faintly.

"Malfoys don't get sick." He grinned at her.

"I suppose I am the exception." She smiled back weakly. He felt a sudden pride, hearing her refer to herself as a part of the Malfoy family. The Malfoy family that was extinct, say for him. And as soon as she said 'I do', Hermione would officially be a part of that family.

"All that will change after June 21st." Draco reminded her. They had picked the twenty-first of June for their wedding because it was soon after they came back from Hogwarts. They wanted to tie the knot as soon as they could, but without all the gossip that would travel through the castle.

"And then I'll be immune to disease?" She grinned weakly.

"Of course. I've had perfect attendance all seven years at Hogwarts. How did you think I did it?"

"Well get out of here before you put a black mark on your record."

"Fine, I see how it is."

"Draco...you know I want you to stay, but I don't want you getting sick." He kissed her forehead gently and winked at her.

"I know, love. I'll see you in the morning." Draco left Hermione's room and headed for the couch. He wanted to be near by incase she woke up in the middle of the night. She'd yell at him for waiting on her, but it didn't matter. He liked caring for her. Marriage would be a snap for him. He didn't sleep well, but he wouldn't admit that it was Hermione who kept him up. She coughed hard most of the night, and finally Draco brewed a potion to relieve the cough. When he brought it to her, she had been so exhausted, she took it without acknowledging the foul stench and rancid taste. When she had stopped coughing, Draco slept rather well. But she woke him again at six as she rushed into the bathroom, pale faced.

"Do you want me to ask your posse for class assignments?" Draco asked, wiping her face gently with a washcloth. Her eyes widened.

"I can't miss class." She whispered.

"Yes you can. You have to."

"But we have N.E.W.T.S.-"

"At the end of the year. I'm sure you can get extra help before then. Now let's get you back to bed." Draco insisted, lifting her off the bathroom floor with ease. He settled her under the covers and brushed strands of hair out of her face.

"I'll stop in after lunch to make sure you're doing all right." She nodded and closed her eyes. Leaving quietly, Draco proceeded to class. He found his concentration wavering. He kept thinking about Hermione, hoping that she was feeling better. As everyone was going to the Great Hall for lunch, Draco bolted through the hallways to get back to the dormitory. Rounding a corner, he slammed into someone. He fell backwards and grabbed onto a statue of a phoenix to keep his balance. He started to glare at the person who had been in his way, but he froze when he recognized the violet eyes.

"Hello, Draco." Evelyn smirked at him. He steadied himself cautiously, wondering what she was up to.

"What do you want?" Draco muttered, not bothering to act civil.

"I want to know how you've been. I heard about your mother. I'm very sorry." She added, her voice holding no sympathy. Draco felt his blood boil, but he remained collected.

"Thank you for your sincere empathy." He replied sarcastically. She frowned at him.

"I was just trying to be nice."

"No you weren't."

"Fine. I wasn't. So I suppose you inherited everything? The entire Malfoy fortune."

"Yes, but what does that have to do with anything?"

"Nothing. But I guess it makes up for the loss." Draco stared in disbelief. How could someone be so heartless?

"I'd give it all away to have my mother back." Draco felt his temper rising. Evelyn noticed and grinned maliciously.

"Well maybe you'll end up giving it away anyway." Her violet eyes sparkled in a 'I know something you don't know' way. Draco opened his mouth to ask her exactly what she meant, but she was already half way down the corridor. He stared after her, bothered and confused. His thoughts returned to Hermione, and he began running up the stairs faster. He burst into the dormitory to see Hermione sitting on the couch, sipping tea.

"Oh, Draco! I was wondering if you had forgotten about me." She smiled at him, her voice sounding stronger.

"How could I forget you? How are you feeling?"

"A lot better. Dumbledore came by to check up on me, and he felt so bad for me, he had Madame Pomfrey whip up a potion to speed up the recovery process."

"I didn't know that there was such a potion."

"Oh yes. But Pomfrey normally doesn't appreciate magical recovery for muggle diseases. She kept saying to Dumbledore that the best cure is to let the body fight off the disease itself."

"Well thank god you're feeling better. Professor Sprout yelled me at today because I was worrying about you." Hermione blushed and motioned for him to sit on the couch with her. "So are you going to afternoon classes?"

"I wanted to, but the potion doesn't allow me to walk. It takes the energy and strength from my legs and applies it to helping me get better. It's only temporary though." She poked her leg harshly. "See, it's numb. Dumbledore levitated me here."

"I see...well I better call in for some lunch. I'm starved."

"Are you all right Draco?"

"Of course. I told you, Malfoys never get sick-"

"I know, but you're looking shaken. Did something happen?" Draco froze as he remembered his encounter with Evelyn. He glanced at Hermione, intending to tell her about the conversation, but he saw the concern in her soft brown eyes and decided not to worry her about it. _I'm probably just paranoid anyway._ He thought. Then he smiled at her reassuringly.

"I'm fine. Just a little tired." She smiled back, but Draco could see that she knew he was keeping something from her. He needed to get her mind off of it so he wouldn't feel so guilty. "Want a massage?" Hermione glanced at him in surprise.

"A massage?"

"Of course. A little Draco Therapy to make you better, perhaps?" He winked at her and she laughed.

"I'd like that."


	11. Flabbergasted

Chapter Eleven:

Flabbergasted

"Thank god you're better, Hermione. We were starting to get worried." Ron said through a mouthful of scrambled eggs. Hermione smiled at Harry and Ron, feeling much better. The strength in her legs returned three days after Dumbledore gave her the potion. She had been growing restless, saying that if Apparation were allowed in Hogwarts, she'd be able to go to class. Draco had teased her about her longing to get back to class, but his taunting always transformed into kissing.

"It's good to be back." She replied, drinking some pumpkin juice. Harry elbowed Ron, who coughed violently.

"Oh yeah, Hermione, there's something Harry and I want to ask you about." He hedged when he had finished his coughing spell. Hermione froze with her fork halfway to her mouth. _God, is it time already for me to tell them about Draco? I haven't even been with them for ten minutes._ She sighed and looked at them expectantly.

"Go ahead, Harry." Ron nudged the green-eyed boy. Harry glared at Ron quickly before turning back to Hermione.

"Well, Hermione, you see, Ron was just wondering-"

"Oh come on, Harry, you were wondering too!"

"Will you two just quit arguing before-" Hermione interrupted, but stopped when the food cleared off of their plates. "Now it's time for class. Ask me later." She sighed with a mixture of disappointment and relief. She rushed out of the great hall, not wanting to endure an inquisition on the way to Potions. Turning a corner sharply, she ran directly into a solid figure. She stumbled backwards a few steps, but the blonde Slytherin caught her.

"Sorry, love. I didn't see you coming." He smiled at her, dropping a short kiss on her cheek. Hermione managed to smile back.

"It's okay. I wasn't really paying attention."

"Are you all right? You look distressed." He paused and lowered his voice. "Did you talk to Potter and Weasley?"

"They tried to talk to me, but they didn't get a chance to ask me before the food disappeared. I pretty much fled the scene, because I was scared to death."

"You can't run from them for long, sweet heart."

"I know. Can't I run just a little longer?" Hermione sighed, staring at the crowds of students pouring out of the Great Hall.

"Well run in the direction of the dungeons. Snape would only be too happy to deduct points for the lateness of the Gryffindor Head Girl." Draco advised, steering her down the stairs. They were the first to enter the empty Potions classroom. Snape was no where in sight.

"So much for that." Hermione winked at Draco and leaned against the wall.

"Well we could make something of our free time." He approached her slowly, and she eyed him suspiciously.

"What are you doing, Draco?"

"This." He replied softly before quickly capturing her lips in a fervent kiss. When he pulled away, they were both at a loss of breath.

"Why does it feel like I haven't done that in years?" Draco wondered aloud, brushing his fingers across her face. Hermione still shivered at his touch.

"Because every minute we're alone feels like a year?" She suggested. Draco sighed and nodded, not caring about his inquiry anymore. He claimed her lips with his again, and slid his tongue between her lips. While the two Heads snogged, Professor Snape entered the classroom, going unnoticed by Draco and Hermione. Upon seeing the sight that almost made him smile, Snape exited the room as quietly as he had entered. Making a distinct amount of noise on his reentry, he gave the Heads time to compose.

"Morning, Draco. Hermione." He nodded to them both curtly, pretending as though he hadn't just witnessed their illegal activity. It wasn't like him to do something such as this. Normally he'd be thrilled to take points from Gryffindor. Something about the mismatched lovers made him go soft. He was in complete awe of their pairing, and he never would have predicted it in a million years. This unlikely couple warmed his heart unlike anything else. But it was better that no one knew that. More students began filing into the classroom, and Snape ceased to dwell on the soft spot in his heart.

"Clear your desktops. Take out your quills." He ordered, picking up the stack of highly difficult tests he had made up. Glancing at the first page, he knew that the only students that would get decent grades were Draco and Hermione. He wondered why he bothered teaching them if he was just going to give them A's in the end. A smirk slipped onto his face as he watched Ron Weasley spill his ink all over the floor.

"Ten points from Gryffindor for your clumsiness, Weasley." As he watched the red head's mouth form a silent curse, Snape felt normal again. As long as he kept taking points from Gryffindors, his soft spot wouldn't weaken his rock solid exterior. His eyes darted across the room as his students took the extremely challenging test. He almost got enjoyment out of seeing the puzzled expressions on most of the student's faces. He watched Draco hesitate only once as his quill flew across the parchment. Hermione didn't hesitate at all. When the class had ended only Draco and Hermione had completed the test. Surprise, surprise.

"Quills down. Pass your tests forward. Weasley, I said quills down." He dismissed the class when all the tests were in his possession. He watched as Draco held the door for Hermione, and that's when he noticed it. A gold band around Draco's left ring finger. Snape narrowed his eyes and caught a glimpse of gold on Hermione's hand as well. He shook his head in disbelief, grabbed some Floo powder and tossed it into the fire. Professor McGonagall was shocked to see Professor Snape enter her office through the fireplace.

"Severus? What brings you here?"

"When do you have class with Malfoy and Granger?"

"They should be entering the classroom any minute now. Why?"

"Pay close attention to the rings on their left hands."

"Severus, you don't suggest that-"

"I do, professor." McGonagall stared at Snape for a moment, thinking that any moment he would say he was just kidding. But it wasn't in Snape's character to joke.

"I shall owl you after my class, Severus."

"Thank you." Snape nodded in thanks and disappeared back into the fire. McGonagall was eager to discover whether Snape had been telling the truth or not. She hurried into the classroom to see all of the students seated and waiting for her.

"Good morning, class."

"Good morning, Professor McGonagall." They chorused.

"Mister Malfoy, would you please assist me in handing out your homework assignment?"

"Certainly, professor." Draco replied, rising and walking to the front of the room. As McGonagall handed him the stack of papers, she glanced at the ring on his left hand. Her eyes widened slightly, and Draco eyed her curiously.

"Is something wrong, professor?" He asked her. She managed a smile and nodded, sending him off to distribute the homework. Still not sure that she believed it, she addressed Hermione.

"Miss Granger, would you please hand out the exams from last week?" Hermione nodded and headed towards the front of the room. As she picked up the stack of exams, McGonagall gasped aloud at the ring on Hermione's finger.

"Oh my goodness." She whispered, still in shock. Hermione stared at her professor and exchanged confused glances with Draco, who had returned with extras.

"Are you feeling all right, professor?"

"Maybe you should go see Madam Pomfrey." Draco suggested. McGonagall stared at the students in front of her. She had heard rumors that the Heads were involved, but she wasn't sure if she believed them. It was all Professor Vector was talking about during meal times. She always bragged about how she had been right all along, but McGonagall still wouldn't believe anything until she saw proof. Now, staring directly at Draco and Hermione, it appeared as though the rumors were true. She took one more glance at the rings on their fingers and took a deep breath.

"I apologize for my behavior. I was up late last night grading papers." McGonagall said quickly, and waved them back to their seats. They both shrugged and sat down. Wondering how she was supposed to teach a lesson when she was in such shock, she paused for a few minutes. Somehow, she made it through the lesson. When the students were dismissed, she sent an owl to Snape and collapsed in her office chair. A soft knock came on the door and tiny Professor Flitwick entered.

"Sorry to bother you, Minerva, but I just heard the most peculiar news from Severus."

"It is very peculiar, but it appears to be the truth."

"A most interesting match, wouldn't you say?"

"Very intriguing. Now if you'll excuse me, I'd like to go inform Professor Dumbledore about this turn of events."

"Of course, but I imagine he already knows."

"Malfoy and Granger?"

"I never saw it coming!"

"The two Heads together? How wonderful!"

"Are you sure about this?"

"When did it all start?" The faculty lounge was abuzz with the news of Draco and Hermione's pairing. Dumbledore raised a hand to silence the group.

"I know this is exciting news for everyone, but this can not get out to the student body. It is their choice when to tell their friends. Therefore, I would appreciate it if discussions were kept to a minimum." The other teachers grumbled their consent. Professor Trelawney rose from her chair.

"I'd like everyone to know that I have predicted this match since the third year. I have not voiced my opinion to save myself from ridicule." McGonagall didn't try to hide her eye roll and groan.

"I'm sure you did, Sybil." Trelawney shot McGonagall a glare.

"I didn't want other professors laughing at me, like they laughed at poor Professor Vector." Trelawney gestured to the Arithmancy professor, who looked up at her mention.

"It wasn't terrible, Sybil. I'm sure you could have handled it." Trelawney decide it would be best if she kept her mouth shut for the rest of the meeting.

"If we are all finished with our side conversations..." Dumbledore interrupted. "Now then. One of our staff has proposed a graduation ball for our seventh year students. I think that this would be a lovely idea. Does anyone have any objections or comments?" The professors all nodded in agreement. "If anyone has a suggestion for the ball, come to my office whenever you can. This meeting is adjourned." As soon as Dumbledore disappeared from the faculty lounge, the chatter about Draco Hermione started again.

Hermione headed to the library by herself. Draco was still at Quidditch practice. As she settled in a cozy armchair with a large textbook, a shadow blocked her light. She glanced up to see Harry standing there.

"Hello, Harry. What brings you here?"

"You."

"Okay...what did you want?" Hermione already knew. She closed her book and stared directly into Harry's green eyes. He sighed.

"I think you already know." When Hermione didn't answer, Harry took her left hand and fingered the engagement ring. "Is this what I think it is?"

"What do you think it is?"

"Come on, Hermione, work with me." He groaned and rolled his eyes. Hermione bit her lip, knowing that she wasn't being fair to her best friend.

"Sorry, Harry. It's not easy for me to say."

"It isn't easy for me to ask either. I'm hurt that you'd keep this from Ron and me."

"I'm sorry, Harry! You'll understand why."

"Well, right now I don't care about why you never told us. Right now I care about whom you're engaged to."

"You don't want to guess?" She asked, trying a feeble smile. Harry rolled his eyes again. Hermione sighed.

"Come on, Hermione. It's just me. We've been best friends for seven years. It can't be so bad that you have to lie to me."

"You don't know that."

"Nothing you can say will make me hate you...unless you're engaged to Malfoy. But that can't be." Hermione's eyes filled with tears and her cheeks flushed red. Harry paused and his mouth fell open.

"Oh my god...you _are_ engaged to Malfoy." She nodded, letting the tears fall down her cheeks. Harry hated her. She knew it. An awkward silence immersed them, and Hermione just cried. Harry stared blankly into the fire, his mouth still agape.

"I've got to go." Hermione finally managed to mutter. Before Harry had a chance to say something or stop her, she was running out of the library. She didn't stop running until she got to her bedroom. Then she threw herself down on her bed and sobbed. Draco walked in from Quidditch practice ten minutes later. He heard her sobs and dropped everything he was carrying. He rushed into her room and approached her cautiously. Upon seeing him, she sat up and threw her arms around his neck. Draco dropped onto the bed and leaned against the headboard, still holding her in his arms. She cried into his chest for awhile. Soon her body stopped convulsing with her heavy sobs, and her breathing slowly steadied. Not sure if he should ask her what happened, he tightened his grip, hoping that she'd break the silence first. She did.

"I told Harry." Draco sighed, he knew that this moment would come.

"I assume that it didn't go well."

"He hates me, Draco."

"I'm sure he doesn't hate you, love."

"He does. I saw it in his eyes." She broke out of Draco's embrace and wiped her face with her hands. She laughed wryly. "And I haven't even told Ron yet."

"Maybe Potter will tell him." Hermione bit her lip and stared into the fire.

"I hope not. I want to tell him personally." Draco watched her eyes fill with more tears, and she turned to look at him. "I love you, Draco." She whispered, hugging him tightly.

"I love you too, sweetie." He replied, holding her close. He would go have a talk with Potter. It broke his heart to see Hermione so upset.

"Potter!" Draco called to the raven-haired boy. When his emerald green eyes settled on the blonde Slytherin, his expression turned dark.

"What do you want, Malfoy?"

"I want to talk to you."

"About what?"

"Hermione." Potter froze and glared up at Draco.

"What did you do to her?" Draco was confused.

"I don't understand you, Potter."

"She seems to think that marrying you is a smart thing to do. What did you do to her? Did you drug her?" Draco almost grinned at the idea of drugging Hermione to get her to marry him. It was preposterous.

"I didn't do anything to her."

"I don't believe you."

"Accept reality, Potter. Hermione and I are getting married on June 21st. You can come and be supportive of your best friend, or you can stay home."

"My so-called best friend has been lying to me."

"Why do you think she did that? Would you have been any more receptive a few months ago?" Draco demanded. He knew that he was right, and so did Potter.

"I'm not ready to accept it right now, Malfoy."

"But you'll learn to live with her decision?" Draco pressed. Potter sighed and appeared to be thinking very hard about the question.

"Eventually."

"Good. Go tell her that yourself."

"Why?"

"Because she's under the impression that you hate her guts." Potter's face softened at this news. Draco was slightly surprised. It was a side of his enemy that he had never seen.

"All right...I'll tell her."

"Thanks, Potter. One more thing, don't tell Weasley. Hermione wants to."

"Do you think that's wise?" Potter asked, raising his eyebrows.

"No, but it's what she wants to do." Potter shrugged and nodded.

"Well, I'll see you around, Malfoy. Congratulations, by the way." Draco had to stop his jaw from hitting the ground. Potter had just congratulated him on his engagement...something he hadn't planned on happening.

"Thanks, Potter. See you around." Draco turned and left, heading for the library. He knew she'd be there. When he entered, he saw her getting ready to leave.

"Hey." He greeted her. She smiled at him, weakly. "Where are you going?"

"To meet Ron." Draco felt his heart beat harshly for her.

"Good luck, love."

"Thanks, Draco. I'm preparing myself for the worst though."

"The best defense is a good offense." Draco replied, picking up her book bag and carrying it for her. She gave him a mock glare and he grinned at her. She hated it when he carried her books for her. She always insisted that she was perfectly capable of carrying them herself. Draco would always reply that it would strengthen his muscles for Quidditch. After awhile, Hermione stopped arguing. He always ended up carrying her books anyway.

"Where are you meeting him?"

"The rose garden."

"I'll walk you to the doors."

"Okay. Thank you." The rest of their walk was silent. Draco knew she was emotionally preparing herself for what was about to happen. He watched her lips moving slightly as she practiced what she wanted to say. When they reached the doors, he gave her a hug. She didn't seem to want to let go, but reluctantly, she released him. She took a few deep breaths and placed her hand on the door handle.

"I love you." Draco said as she turned to shut the door again. She gave him a genuine smile just before the door snapped shut. Quickly, Draco turned and rushed to the window over looking the rose garden. He saw Weasley waiting for her. Hermione saw Ron pacing the garden and the knot in her stomach tightened. She was suddenly afraid of losing her lunch. The thought of turning around and running back to the castle entered her mind, and sounded very appealing. But Ron turned at that moment when she was about to run away and spotted her. He waved at her, grinning, and she tried to return the smile.

"Hermione! I feel like I haven't seen you in forever!" He said as she approached.

"I know." She replied shortly, trying to remain calm. Ron noticed her fiddling with the ring on her hand and his expression turned serious.

"This is about your ring, isn't it?"

"Nothing gets past you, Ron." She sighed, wanting to hit herself for having drawn his attention to her hand.

"Who gave it to you?"

"Look, Ron, there isn't really an easy way for me to say this-"

"So just say it! I've been dying to know!"

"It doesn't work that way, Ron."

"Is it someone from Gryffindor?" Hermione shook her head slowly. "Hufflepuff, then? There are some decent fellows in that house, I think."

"No, it's not someone from Hufflepuff."

"Then it must be Ravenclaw. Mmm, who do I know from that house? That Terry Boot chap! Yes, it must be him!"

"It's no one from Ravenclaw, either." Hermione whispered, looking down at the ground, knowing Ron would hit the roof when he realized it was someone from Slytherin. He would be positively fuming when he discovered who the someone from Slytherin was.

"Oh no, Hermione. Not a Slytherin."

"Yes...a Slytherin." She replied weakly, not daring to look into Ron's eyes.

"Hermione...if the Slytherin I'm thinking of is who you're going to marry, I'm taking you to the hospital to have you checked out."

"I'm engaged to Draco Malfoy." Hermione spit out quickly, wanting to get it over with now. She snuck a peek at Ron, and his ears were turning red.

"WHAT? Hermione, have you gone DAFT?" He bellowed, his voice echoing off the courtyard walls. Hermione winced at the volume.

"I love him, Ron."

"YOU LOVE HIM??? OH THIS JUST KEEPS GETTING BETTER." He shouted, furiously. Hermione began to cry, and that's when Draco left the window. He rushed through the front doors of the castle and hurried to the rose garden. Ron was in the middle of a rant when he spotted Draco coming towards them. His face went white.

"That's enough, Weasley. Now leave her alone." Draco demanded, taking Hermione into his arms. Ron watched in disgust.

"This is outrageous! What have you done to Hermione?"

"I haven't done anything to her, Weasley! Now let's drop it for today, you've caused enough damage." Draco snapped, ushering Hermione back towards the castle. Hermione managed to calm herself down as they climbed the flights of stairs to the dormitory. Draco led her to her room and sat down on the side of her bed. She gratefully slipped under the covers and closed her eyes. Draco stayed with her until she was sleeping. When he was sure she had finally drifted off, he left her room. He sat down at his desk and wrote a quick message to Potter. He sent Poseidon off with it and collapsed onto his bed. Maybe Potter would be able to calm Weasley down enough so that he can begin the initial stages of acceptance.

Hermione woke up with the worst headache of her life. For a few wonderful moments, she forgot completely about what had happened the day before. Then reality floored her, and she felt like she wanted to die. Harry hated her, and Ron was furious. At least Draco still loved her. And Ginny, god bless her, seemed to understand. Her door opened and Draco poked his head in.

"Ah you're awake. How are you feeling?"

"I have such a bad headache and both of my best friends hate me."

"Potter doesn't hate you."

"Yes he does, Draco. I know he does. He has a reason to hate me anyway." She muttered, staring out the window at the dark sky. Rain began pelting down, hitting the windows in a rhythmic fashion. Draco sighed and slipped under the covers next to Hermione.

"I talked to him yesterday. He doesn't hate you." Draco admitted. He would have wanted Potter to tell Hermione himself, but she looked so devastated. Hermione turned her head to look at him.

"He said that?"

"He said that it's going to take some time, but eventually he's going to accept your decision." Draco replied, wrapping his arms around her. She felt small and fragile in his arms. He wanted to hold her as tightly as he could, but she was so delicate, he was afraid he'd hurt her.

"I hope Ron is as forgiving."

"He'll get over it. It's just the initial shock that's hard for him."

"I suppose." A loud knock came from the common room. Draco frowned and let go of Hermione. Whoever disturbed their moment would be very sorry.

"I'll be right back, love." He said to Hermione as he went to answer the door. The knock came again and Draco rolled his eyes. "I'm coming, I'm coming." He opened the door and froze.

"Hello, Draco. Nice to see you again." Evelyn smiled coldly at him. Draco narrowed his eyes at her.

"What do you want?"

"I want to know if it's true."

"If what's true?" Draco asked, though realizing deep inside of him what she was going to ask. Evelyn seemed to stare right into his thoughts, and Draco shifted uncomfortably.

"Are you really going to marry that mudblood?" Draco's temper went on fire.

"Don't you dare call her that."

"Well I suppose you can redefine the Malfoy name since you're the only one of them left." Something that looked like loathing flashed through her eyes. "Personally, I wouldn't have disgraced the name by bringing something like her into the family."

"Well it's not your choice to make, is it?" She raised an eyebrow, and Draco once again got the distinct feeling that she knew something that he didn't.

"We'll see." She gave him one last cold stare and left. Draco wondered if she got pleasure out of walking all the way to the Head dormitory to have a five-minute conversation, then leave. Shaking his head in disgust, Draco shut the door and returned to Hermione.

"What was that all about?"

"It was nothing." Draco lied, not wanting to burden Hermione even further.

"I heard everything, Draco, so don't tell me it was nothing."

"I'm sorry, love. I just don't want to worry you, especially since you have enough on your mind right now." Her face softened and she beckoned him over. He slipped back under the covers and took her in his arms.

"Do you think that she knows something?" Hermione asked, softly.

"Yes...but I can't figure out what it is."

"Maybe that's why she gets so much enjoyment out of walking up here. She wants to see us squirm." Draco sighed and decided that he didn't want to worry about it now.

"Let's not think about her right now. Let's think about our honeymoon." For the first time in what seemed like forever, Hermione smiled.

"Where should we go?"

"Paris, the city of love?" Draco suggested. "I've always wanted to go to Paris."

"What about the Bahamas?"

"The what?"

"It's an island in the Caribbean. It's supposed to be gorgeous, and I've always wanted to go. Maybe we could take a cruise or something!"

"A cruise?"

"I'm sorry. I keep forgetting that you don't know anything in the Muggle world. A cruise is a boat trip to a bunch of islands. It's like a gigantic hotel that floats on the water."

"Sounds interesting."

"They're a lot of fun. That way, we can go to a whole bunch of islands instead of just one." Hermione smiled with content.

"Good. We'll do one of those. Can we still go to Paris?" Hermione laughed.

"Sure we can. We can go everywhere with that money you inherited." Draco nodded, but felt a slight twinge of sadness. He would give all the money back to have his mother alive. When it came time for classes, the two Heads had finished breakfast in the common room and were cleaning up.

"I have Muggle Studies this morning. We won't see each other until Potions."

"Damn. Well, I can't wait until then." Draco kissed her gently before heading off towards Divination. Hermione walked to her Muggle Studies classroom and sat down. A few girls in the back of the room started whispering to each other and looking at Hermione. She shook it off as paranoia. It became increasingly harder to ignore. As she walked to History of Magic, one Ravenclaw girl approached her.

"Are you Hermione Granger?"

"Yes...why do you ask?"

"No reason." The girl gave her a quick smile before hurrying over to her group of friends. Hermione heard her whisper to them, "That's her! The one who's marrying Draco Malfoy!" Hermione felt her heart sink as she realized that Harry or Ron must have let something slip to another Gryffindor. Whispers followed her as she sat down in History of Magic. She dared to look over at Harry and Ron. Harry was looking back at her, but stared quickly down at his book when she looked over. Ron was pressing his quill down so hard as he wrote something, the tip snapped off and he cursed loudly. Some of the other Gryffindors gave her nasty looks, as though she had betrayed them all. She wanted to curl up in a corner and stay there until the end of the day, when she could be with Draco for the entire night. After History of Magic, which she found hard to pay attention to, she shuffled off to the bathroom. Shutting herself in a stall, she cried as silently as she could. She heard the door creak open and two girls entered. Hermione covered her mouth and tried not to make a sound.

"Can you believe that Hermione is going to marry Draco Malfoy?" Hermione identified the first speaker as Lavender.

"No! I can't believe she'd do something like that! Doesn't she know that Harry and Ron despise him?" The second speaker was Parvati. Hermione should have known that it would be them. They were usually inseparable.

"Well, they were certainly a sight last night. Ron was screaming so loudly, I thought he'd pass out. And poor Harry tried to calm him down when he was a wreck himself."

"You can't really blame them though. After all, their best friend is sleeping with the enemy." Hermione bit her lip to keep from screaming that she wasn't sleeping with Draco.

"Draco is pretty sexy. And Hermione has to live with him, so I guess I can understand how something would happen."

"I can't. If I knew my friends hated a guy, I wouldn't marry him."

"Well she must have a good reason to marry him. It takes a lot to go against your best friends. Maybe she really does love him."

"She might love him, but he probably doesn't love her. He's just stringing her along to get sex. That's how Draco Malfoy is." Hermione bit her lip even harder to keep herself from defending Draco.

"Well he must be pretty desperate if he had to give her a ring to get her to get in bed with him. I don't think he's using her for sex. He could get it cheap from Pansy if he really wanted it."

"Whatever is going on between those two, I hope Hermione knows what she's doing. If their relationship ends up not working out, she better pray that Harry and Ron are willing to forgive her." Their conversation got dimmer as they left the bathroom. Hermione took a few deep breaths and left her stall. She stared at her reflection, despising what she saw. Parvati and Lavender were right. How could she do this to her best friends? But she could never give up Draco. She knew she wouldn't do that to him or to herself. After washing her face, Hermione left and headed for the Study of Ancient Runes. As she entered the classroom, most of the girls erupted into whispers. Hermione found them easier to ignore as the day went on. When Potions finally came, she wanted to collapse in Draco's arms and stay there forever. But the last thing she wanted was everyone seeing their public display of affection. Then no one would be whispering anymore. They'd just talk out loud as though she couldn't hear them. Draco looked up as she entered. He gave her a tiny smile, and she tried to return with a weak grin. Her eyes were reddened, and her cheeks were flushed. Draco watched the glares that some of the Gryffindors gave her. He heard the whispers between two blonde girls. He felt the pain Hermione felt when Ron sent her an ice-cold glare.

"Heads, work together." Snape called out. Every eye focused on Draco as he gathered his things and moved to sit next to Hermione. When everyone had stopped staring the pair down, Draco moved his hand over hers. She glanced at him with teary eyes and her bottom lip started to tremble.

"Draco-"

"Shh...it's going to be all right, love. I promise." Draco whispered, wiping the tear that had fallen onto her cheek. She nodded and wiped her own eyes with her hands. They worked in silence, ignoring the glances and whispers directed to them. When they had finished their assignment, Draco handed in their vile and Hermione cleaned up. When he returned to help her, she stopped and looked up at him. He stared back into her beautiful brown eyes and wanted so much to hug her. She touched his hand gently and smiled at him.

"I love you, Draco." She whispered. He took her hand in his and returned her smile.

"I love you too, sweet heart." They finished cleaning up and sat down in their chairs, waiting for class to be dismissed. Hermione spoke quietly about how her morning had gone, and Draco felt bad that he couldn't have been there for her. When Snape finally dismissed the class, Draco and Hermione left together and walked to Transfiguration side by side. As was the norm, whispers filled the corridors and followed them as they walked. When they stepped inside the classroom to see it empty, Draco wrapped his arms around Hermione. She hung on tightly to the only person who could make her smile on her worst day. Professor McGonagall entered suddenly, and the couple split apart quickly.

"Good afternoon, Miss Granger. Mister Malfoy." She greeted them. She took note of Hermione's red eyes and paused. "Is something wrong, Miss Granger?"

"Yes, ma'am. You see, somehow it got out that Draco and I are to be married, and it hasn't been going too well with my fellow Gryffindors." Hermione explained, finding it somewhat odd that she felt comfortable confiding in Professor McGonagall.

"I am sorry to hear that, Miss Granger. If there is anything I can do to help, just ask."

"Thank you, professor, but I think we just have to deal with the whispers for now." Hermione replied, taking her seat. McGonagall nodded and began leafing through some papers on her desk. More students filed into the classroom, and the whispers started when they saw Draco seated next to Hermione. McGonagall looked up from her work and caught some of the whispers being uttered.

"Can you believe that?"

"She's such a traitor-"

"How could she do that to us?" McGonagall was struck with pity for Hermione. The poor girl had to deal with ridicule that she didn't deserve.

"Settle down, class." The class went silent, and McGonagall planned on keeping it that way for Draco and Hermione's sake. "Turn to page 504 and complete the exercises on page 510. You may work with a partner." The class paired themselves up and began working on the assignment. McGonagall listened carefully for conversations unrelated to the given assignment. Finally, she heard Lavender and Parvati say something about Hermione.

"Miss Brown, would you like to share something with the rest of us?" Lavender turned slightly pink and looked down at the floor.

"We were just discussing the assignment, professor."

"Were you? Since when does the textbook say anything about Hermione Granger?" Hermione looked up at her mention. Draco took her hand quickly and wondered what McGonagall was doing. Lavender turned a darker shade of red.

"It doesn't, professor."

"No, it doesn't. From now on, anyone talking about something other than the assignment given will be given a detention. Continue working, please." Draco felt a sudden rush of respect and gratitude for Professor McGonagall. Hermione wanted to hug her teacher, because for the first time all day, the whispers ceased. At the end of Transfiguration, Hermione packed up her things slowly so that she would be the last to leave. Draco hung behind as well. No one said anything about that until they were out of McGonagall's earshot.

"Professor McGonagall, I think I speak for both of us when I say thank you." Hermione said, gesturing to Draco, who nodded in agreement.

"It was the least I could do for the prized students of Hogwarts. I've taken the liberty of sending a memo to your other professors. None of them will stand for the gossip either."

"Thank you so much, professor." Hermione murmured, still in awe that most of the Hogwarts faculty knew about the engagement. Draco said his thanks and ushered Hermione out of the classroom.

"Do you think the entire staff knows?" Draco wondered aloud.

"I wouldn't doubt it. You saw how fast gossip traveled in this castle."

"Then it could have been a teacher who let something slip." Draco suggested, but Hermione shook her head.

"No...I heard Lavender say that Ron was screaming his head off in the Gryffindor common room last night. Someone must have heard that."

"Well, it doesn't really matter who gave it away. It just matters that it's out." When the final class was dismissed, Draco and Hermione rushed back to the common room. Hermione was more than eager to leave the whispers behind, although they had distinctly decreased after McGonagall's threat. Draco collapsed onto the couch and held out his arms. Hermione quickly entered his embrace and held on.

"And this is only the first day." Hermione muttered, groaning.

"Well let's think of the good." Draco suggested, not wanting Hermione to burst into tears again.

"There isn't any."

"Of course there is. Now we don't have to hide our relationship. We can be publicly affectionate without worrying about people finding out since they already know."

"I suppose there's that." Hermione admitted, snuggling closer to Draco. "But then people will whisper about us even more."

"So? Let them whisper. They're only jealous."

"They're only jealous because the sexiest man in Hogwarts is now tied down." Hermione pointed out, kissing his cheek. Draco laughed.

"That may be, but I'm sure there are other guys out there who wish they had seen you first." Hermione snorted at this.

"I doubt it. Everyone sees me as a bookworm. You're the first person who hasn't. Even Harry and Ron have seen me as a bookworm. They always ask me to help them with their homework-"

"So do I."

"But you ask me other things as well. My interests, my passions. Few people realize that I have a life beyond school."

"Well they may see you as a bookworm, but they have to see you as a beautiful bookworm." Hermione laughed at this, and Draco was proud of himself.

"You're just saying that to make me feel better."

"I'm saying that because it's true."

"Sure." Hermione rolled her eyes sarcastically. Draco laughed and kissed her.

"Even if I was just trying to make you feel better, it doesn't even matter. Who cares what everyone else thinks? Are we happy together?"

"Very."

"So there's no problem." There came a knock on the door. Draco glared at it, expecting it to be Evelyn again. Hermione rolled off of Draco and went to answer it. Harry was standing in the doorway, and Hermione froze. Draco slipped out of the common room, escaping to his bedroom to let them have privacy. When Hermione had found the strength to move aside and let him enter, she was able to speak.

"I'm surprised to see you here."

"I'm almost surprised to see myself here, but I needed to talk to you."

"Go ahead, Harry." She urged him on, sitting down in an armchair. Harry took a seat on the couch and put his head in his hands.

"Hermione, I know you would never want to hurt me or Ron, so I suppose I can understand why you wanted to keep this a secret for so long. I'm not really ready to accept the fact that you are going to become Malfoy's wife, so I need you to understand that I need some time. Ron will probably need a lot of time. He's pretty furious with you."

"I know, but he has every right to be."

"I don't know about that, Hermione. I was mad at first, but then it just turned into shock. I just need to get over the shock, and I'll be fine."

"Thank you for understanding, Harry."

"Anything for my best friend." He stared at her seriously, and Hermione felt as though a thousand-pound weight had been lifted from her shoulders.

"And thank you for stopping by to tell me that. I was worried that you hated me."

"I won't lie, I did hate you for a moment there, but that didn't last very long. You were crying, and I knew that you probably didn't have much control over your feelings at this point. You couldn't just stop liking Malfoy because Ron and I didn't want you to. That's when I knew that I had to understand. I didn't want you to have to choose between your friends and your fiance." Hermione wanted to cry tears of happiness and relief. Instead, when Harry stood up, she threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. He hugged her back, and they remained this way for a long time. Finally, Hermione let go and smiled at Harry.

"You're the best friend anyone could ask for, Harry Potter."

"You aren't bad yourself, Hermione Granger." Hermione shook her head, slightly.

"Take care of Ron for me, Harry." Harry nodded and disappeared down the stairs.

wow that was a long one. I didn't realize this chapter was a novel in itself, but you guys probably don't mind anyway. Thanks for your reviews! They're much appreciated!


	12. Final Destination

Chapter Twelve:

Final Destination

Evelyn glowered at the two people who were responsible for ruining her life. They sat huddled together in the far corner of the library, studying. The diamond ring sparkled in the firelight, and Evelyn shook her head in disgust. It was bad enough that he was involved with her, but he had to go and propose. It just made everything so much more complicated for Evelyn. But after weeks of scheming, she had found the perfect way to get what she wanted. She had already set everything up. All she had to do was wait for the perfect moment to set it into action. She glared at the couple one more time before leaving the library. The world would thank her for getting rid of them both.

"Draco! Stop it! We need to study!" Hermione squealed, trying to escape Draco's tickles. He laughed and kissed her cheek.

"We've been studying all day. Can't we just relax? Have a little fun?" He asked, running his hand up her leg to her thigh. She laughed and shook her head.

"It's your fault for choosing a bookworm. Now ask me some more questions."

"Come on, Hermione! All work and no play makes for-"

"A perfect score on our N.E.W.T.S.!" She interrupted him. He sighed and ran his hands through his hair.

"Maybe I didn't think this proposal through." He muttered in a teasing voice. She gasped in mock affliction and grasped her heart.

"Draco! That hurt!" She exclaimed, standing up and walking towards another couch. Draco laughed and followed her, grabbing her around the waist.

"You know I was just kidding, love." He whispered in her ear, nuzzling her neck. She turned around and allowed him to kiss her gently. Their innocent, simple kiss deepened quickly, and before she knew it, Draco had her on the couch.

"Draco!" She groaned, trying to push him off. He stopped and grinned at her.

"Just a little break, Hermione. Only for a few minutes. Please?" She gave in when he pulled the puppy dog eyes on her. Only a few minutes turned into two hours, during which they cuddled and kissed on the couch. When Hermione finally glanced at the clock, she gasped and broke out of Draco's embrace.

"It's already ten o'clock and we haven't even finished studying for Transfiguration!" She exclaimed, rushing over to the table where her books were spread out. She flipped through the textbooks hurriedly and gathered her notes.

"You're too uptight, Hermione. Loosen up."

"And you're not tight enough, Draco. Don't worry, I'll be back to normal as soon as these N.E.W.T.S. are over." She smiled at him before continuing to leaf through her study materials. Draco sighed and joined her at the table, going through his own notes. They worked in silence for a few hours, and at midnight, they called it quits.

"You know it's time to go to bed when Hermione starts dozing off." Draco teased her as they headed to the bathroom to brush their teeth.

"It won't happen again, I can assure you."

"Really? Do you recall how you got to bed last night? You fell asleep while studying for History of Magic. I had to carry you into your room and put you to bed." Draco reminded her, washing out his mouth. Hermione gasped.

"You mean I didn't brush my teeth last night?"

"Uh...no."

"Great. I'll have to brush twice tonight."

"Oh yeah, you're parents are teeth people, right?"

"Yes. They're called dentists in the muggle world." She replied, brushing her teeth for a second time. Draco shook his head and laughed.

"You're daft, Hermione."

"So?"

"I never said there was anything wrong with that." He corrected himself as Hermione glared in his direction. Then she grinned and washed her face.

"There's nothing wrong with being a little crazy. Good night, Draco."

"Good night, Hermione." He replied, kissing her softly on the lips before heading to his bedroom.

Harry stared at Ron. Once again, the red-haired boy had gone oddly quiet. Ever since Ron had heard the news about Hermione's engagement, he would randomly go silent. Now, he stared straight into the fire without saying anything.

"Ron?" Harry poked him in the shoulder. "Are you all right, mate?" Ron shook his head suddenly as though to clear his mind.

"Yeah. I'm fine. Sorry, were you saying something?"

"Yeah, I was asking you if you wanted to talk about Hermione now."

"I told you, Harry, when I'm ready to talk, I'll come to you."

"But this is getting ridiculous now, Ron. It's been almost two months. We're leaving Hogwarts for good in a couple of weeks. Don't you want to leave in a better mood?"

"It's not that easy, Harry. I feel betrayed. Don't you?"

"Not really, Ron. Don't you think that she really must love him if she went against her friends? She wouldn't try to hurt us on purpose."

"She could have told us sooner. I would have taken the news better if she had told us when she first started dating him. All of a sudden she comes to us and she's married."

"She's only engaged, Ron."

"It's the same thing. I've seen them together, Harry. They're as good as married."

"Don't you want to leave Hogwarts on good terms with your best friend?"

"Yes, but I don't think I'm ready to forgive her yet! I still can't understand why you can forgive her for sneaking around behind our backs."

"Because I understand why she didn't want to tell us. And I understand that we shouldn't let a grudge hold us back from being with our best friend. I'm going to be at their wedding, Ron. You can either come, or you can stay home."

"I might puke."

"At least you'll be there for your best friend."

"Let me think about it, Harry. I really don't want to talk about this when we're preparing to take our N.E.W.T.S. I'm under enough pressure as it is."

"When you're ready to talk about it, go to her. She needs to hear it more than I do."

"Talk to her? Why can't I just tell you, and then you can tell her?"

"What are you afraid of?"

"I just don't want to see them together, that's all. I don't like it, Harry, I really don't. It makes me sick just looking at them."

"We'll be out of here in two weeks and you won't have to see them again if you really don't want to."

"I'm counting down. Now can we please talk about something else? I'm starting to get nauseous." Harry frowned at his best friend. One of the most recurring problems with Ron, was that he tended to make decisions out of haste, while he was still angry. Harry didn't want Ron to say that he wasn't going to go to Hermione's wedding, because two weeks could change his mind. Harry didn't want to go to Hermione's wedding alone, either. He'd feel awkward without Ron. Maybe Ginny would go. She was the one who convinced Harry to understand how Hermione felt. She had tried to talk to Ron, but Ron wouldn't listen to his little sister. He wouldn't listen to anyone. Sometimes he stopped talking completely. But Harry had a feeling that at some point before the last two weeks they had at Hogwarts, Ron would come around and forgive Hermione. Harry tried to help by talking to Ron about it, but looking at the red-head now, he realized he had only accomplished making him angrier.

It was one o'clock in the morning. Hermione slipped on her robe and quietly slipped out of her bedroom. She peeked quickly into Draco's bedroom, and he was fast asleep. She smiled faintly as she closed the door. As softly as she could, she hurried down the stairs and into the library. Making sure she made as little noise as possible, she slipped into the Restricted Section. She wasn't exactly sure if she would find what she needed in the library, but it was somewhere to start.

"Lumos!" She whispered. By the lighted tip of her wand, she carefully read the spine of every book in the Restricted Section. Without finding what she needed, she returned to the dormitory. Someone watched her from the shadows. Someone realized that Hermione was dangerously close to learning something that she shouldn't know. Someone's violet eyes flashed in the darkness with anger and hatred.

"Can I have everyone's attention?" Dumbledore's voice rang out in Great Hall at dinner. He had requested that Draco and Hermione be present at dinner that evening instead of eating in their common room. He allowed them to dine at the staff table. The students quieted down and looked up at the headmaster. "I have an important announcement to make. This year, all seventh year students will have a graduation ball. Younger students will not be permitted to attend unless they are invited by a seventh year student." Grumbles of protest erupted from the younger students, and Dumbledore held up a hand to silence them. "This ball is to celebrate their last day at Hogwarts. You may wear the costumes from the masquerade ball if you wish. It will follow immediately after the graduation ceremony. Thank you. Study hard for final examinations." Dumbledore concluded and sat back down. Hermione nudged Draco and smiled.

"We can do the masquerade ball all over again."

"We can do it right this time." He grinned. "You will be my dance partner for the entire night. No ifs, ands, or buts."

"But-"

"Ah! What did I say?" He interrupted. She rolled her eyes at him, then laughed. Some of the teachers watched Draco and Hermione talk and laugh throughout the meal in awe. Others asked them questions about their wedding and honeymoon. Draco and Hermione were only too happy to answer them. With all the hostility from the student, it was refreshing to find that some people were excited and thrilled for them. Professor McGonagall extended an invitation to them to have dinner at the staff table every night. Hermione accepted, happily. She was glad that she could rejoin the activity that went on in the Great Hall at meal times. Draco found talking to Professor Snape about his opinion of infusions of diamond dust in particular potions to be invigorating. They often debated the effects long after the food disappeared from the plates. Hermione often spoke with Professor McGonagall about becoming a Transfiguration professor at Hogwarts.

"You'd be an excellent teacher, Miss Granger! I have no doubt that you will be able to pursue any career you desire." McGonagall exclaimed one night. When Draco and Hermione finally excused themselves from the table, they were both feeling refreshed.

"Professor Snape thinks that I have a career in Potion Making. He said that I have enough knowledge of the ingredients to even invent my own potion."

"Professor McGonagall thinks I'd be a wonderful teacher some day. I can't wait to graduate and start applying for jobs." They both carried on about their future aspirations until they rounded a corner and bumped into Ron.

"Sorry, Ron. I was walking kind of fast." Hermione excused herself, looking at the ground nervously. _What should I say now?_

"It's okay. Well I'll see you around." Hermione didn't want to let him just walk away. She had been wanting to talk to him for a long time.

"Ron, wait!" She exclaimed, walking after him. He paused and allowed her to catch up with him. "Ron, I want to talk to you."

"About what?"

"I want to know if you're upset with me. You have a perfectly good reason to be, but I really hope you're not. I don't want to graduate from Hogwarts with the support of my two best friends."

"I don't want to either, Hermione. But I'm not ready to accept this yet."

"Will you find me when you are?" Hermione asked as he started to walk away. Her voice cracked and her eyes filled with tears. Ron seemed to feel her sadness, but he couldn't forgive her now. Not yet.

"When I'm ready, I'll come find you." He replied, walking away. Hermione sighed and went back to Draco. He didn't say anything. He wasn't sure if she was ready to talk about it yet. He just put his arm around her shoulders and led her up the stairs. He sat with her in her bed until she was sleeping. Then he left and went to his own bed. Their second to last N.E.W.T.S. exam was the next afternoon. Draco felt prepared, but uneasy. For some reason, he couldn't sleep very well. He was tired the next morning when he woke up. He met Hermione for breakfast. They both didn't say very much. After their test, Hermione seemed to be a little more alive.

"I thought that it was extremely easy. The only question I had a little bit of a problem with was the last essay question." She chattered on.

"I had some difficulty with the first short response question. The wording threw me off a little." Draco replied, downing some pumpkin juice.

"Well I feel like I can finally relax." Hermione sighed and settled back in her chair.

"Why? We still have one more exam tomorrow." Draco pointed out, grabbing his Potions textbook to study.

"We've been studying for Potions the longest and the hardest. I feel completely confident." She smiled at him and stood up. She walked over to him and pulled the book out of his hands. "So confident, I think I'm ready for that break you keep talking about." She winked at him and sat down on his lap. He grinned and kissed her cheek.

"You are so innocently sexy." He told her as he scooped her up in his arms and carried her to his room.

"And you are just so sexy, so we're even." He smiled at her and set her down on his bed. It began with a gentle kiss. The mere brushing of their lips sent shivers down Hermione's spine. Draco shifted so he could hold her closer, and he kissed her again. His tongue pressed gently at her lips, imploring for entry. She allowed his tongue to enter her mouth, and gasped as it touched her own tongue. Hermione had kissed her share of guys, but none of them could ever make her feel as amazing as Draco Malfoy. At first his hands just held her tightly as they kissed. As the kissing intensified, his fingers worked with expertise on her blouse. Her arms encircled his neck and entangled themselves in his blonde hair. Soon enough, her blouse was splayed open, her bra cast aside, and his mouth moved downwards to her developed breasts. He fondled them gently, and sucked on her right nipple. Hermione gasped and moved beneath him. She felt like she couldn't stay still, but his body held her in place, compelling her to writhe in pleasure under him. He moved down further, kissing her navel lightly. He returned to her face and kissed her fervently. Without warning, he plunged deep into her, forcing force Hermione to cry out in a mixture of pain and pleasure.

"It's okay, love, just hold on to me." He murmured gently in her ear, suddenly realizing the reason for her tightness was virginity. Hermione held onto Draco with all she had, counting on him to get her through the initial pain. She caught his rhythm easily, and then she began to relax. He pulled out of her briefly, only to push back in moments later. Her ample breasts pressed up against his bare chest as she held on tight. He kept dipping in and out of her until he felt himself climaxing. He forced himself even further into her, and she whimpered loudly. The waves of pleasure swept over them, and Draco fell forward onto Hermione, exhausted. For hours, they remained lying on the couch, listening to the beating of their synchronized hearts.

Hermione yawned and rolled over. The cool satin sheets hugged her bare body. She blinked against the sun that was streaming in through the windows. Draco was no where in sight. She snuggled into the sheets and closed her eyes. The door opened quietly and Draco poked his head in. Hermione looked over at him and smiled.

"Good morning, sleepy head." He returned her smile. She beckoned him to her with a finger. He slipped under the covers next to her and wrapped his arms around her body.

"Where did you go?"

"Fixing our breakfast." Hermione raised her eyebrows at him.

"You made our breakfast? With your cooking skills?" She teased him.

"No, I didn't make it. I just fixed the table all nice and pretty for our last day of classes." He corrected her. She kissed his cheek gently.

"That was nice of you. We still have one more breakfast in this dormitory though."

"And that one will be even more wonderful. So when you're ready, come out and eat with me." He kissed her forehead and got out of the bed. He took another glance at her over his shoulder before leaving the room. Hermione smiled and got out of bed, wrapping a robe around her. When she reached the common room, Draco was pouring pumpkin juice into champagne glasses. He winked at her.

"The champagne is for tomorrow." The table was set nicely with candles and expensive looking flatware. Hermione shook her head at him.

"You didn't have to do this."

"I had a lot of time on my hands while you were sleeping."

"Well we better hurry up and eat. Our exam starts in an hour." Hermione said, glancing at the clock. Draco pulled our her chair for her and she sat down. "I could get used to this, you know." She grinned at him.

"Yes you could. It will happen every day for the rest of your life, so you better get used to it." He replied, helping himself to some scrambled eggs. After breakfast, Hermione took a quick shower. They walked down to the exam room together, ignoring the whispers that still followed them through the corridors. When the exam was finished, shouts of joy were heard echoing through every hall. Through the mayhem, Draco took Hermione's hand and led her out the front doors to the castle.

"Well how does it feel, Hermione? You have nothing to study for anymore."

"It's kind of disappointing. I feel like I don't know what to do with myself." She replied, staring at the clear blue sky. Draco took her in his arms.

"I know what we can do." He whispered in her ear. She pulled away and grinned.

"You didn't have enough last night?" He kissed her softly.

"It's not that it wasn't good, Hermione, because it was-"

"Oh shut up, Draco! Come on, let's go." She rolled her eyes at him and pulled him towards the school.

At dinner that night, Professor McGonagall conversed with Hermione about all of the jobs that catered to her interests. She gave Hermione her address and told her to write when she finally found a profession that she enjoyed. Hermione promised to keep in touch. Draco talked to Professor Snape about an idea he had to improve the Polyjuice Potion.

"If you added a few more lacewings and an infusion of snake venom, it would make the transformation much less painful." Draco explained. Snape was extremely impressed and promised to contact a few laboratories where Draco could get a job in Potion Making. In the middle of dinner, Dumbledore rose and quieted the students.

"I'll only be a minute. I'd just like to congratulate all of our seventh year students for their outstanding performances on the N.E.W.T.S. In fact, the highest grade in recorded history was achieved by Hermione Granger in the department of Transfiguration." The hall burst into cheers, and Hermione blushed a deep red. Draco leaned over to give her a hug, and whispers broke out in the hall. "I wish all of our graduating students the best of luck in what ever career they wish to pursue. As for everyone else, I hope to see you all next year. Have a safe summer holiday." Dumbledore sat down and the hall exploded into cheers. McGonagall gave Hermione a hug for her accomplishment. Tired, but happy, Draco and Hermione retired early. They sat in front of the fire for hours, reflecting on their experience at Hogwarts.

"Did I ever apologize for slapping you in our third year?" Hermione asked, still smirking slightly at the memory.

"No, you didn't." He sighed. "God did I get teased about that one."

"I'm sorry. But you were being a jerk."

"What else is new?"

"I'm very proud of you. I can't believe you made such a turn around. It takes a big person to do something like that."

"You helped, Hermione. You changed me." Draco kissed her gently, then more intensely. Hermione pulled away for a moment and eyed him suspiciously.

"You want something, Draco."

"No I don't!" He exclaimed. She raised an eyebrow at him and he sighed. "Just meet me in my room tonight."

"Draco! Again?" He grinned at her, and she smiled back. "Fine!"

The Gryffindor common room was trashed. All of the rowdy seventh years threw a party for all of the younger Gryffindors who couldn't attend the ball. It was an extremely wild party. Seamus broke out the Firewhiskey, and Dean led everyone in a game of spin the bottle. Harry and Ron sat on the sidelines, preferring to watch the festivities, rather than partake in them. Harry spent his time thinking about how Hermione was spending her last night in Hogwarts, and how he wished that it could be like old times. He wished that Hermione would just come through the portrait hole and try to break up the party. He and Ron would try to stop her, telling her that it was their last night in Hogwarts for the rest of their lives. She would try to fight them off, but eventually, she would give up and stalk off to her room. Harry tried to pretend that she had just stalked up to her room, but it did no good. He still felt like they were leaving Hogwarts on the wrong foot. Ron was thinking about whether or not he should go to Hermione's wedding. After seven years in Hogwarts with her, he realized that she had always forgiven him when he had messed up. She had always been there for him when he had treated her like crap. He owed her the same. But running into her with Malfoy in the corridor had ruined his concentration. He was on his way to find her. He knew what he was going to say. He didn't plan on bumping in on the engaged couple. Just seeing them together was enough to bring back all of the anger and fury he had felt when she had first told him. Now that he had time to think about it, he was ready to try again. Without warning, he stood up and left the common room. Harry got up quickly and followed him out.

"Ron, where are you going?"

"I'm ready." Was all he replied. Harry stopped and let Ron continue by himself. He understood where he was going, and that he needed to do it alone. Ron reached the door and knocked. When no one answered the first time, he tried again. He heard movement from inside and he took a deep breath.

"Weasley? What are you doing here at this hour of the night?" Ron glared at Malfoy, then noticed he was wearing only a towel.

"What are you doing taking a shower at this hour of the night?" Ron demanded, trying to convince himself that that was all that Malfoy was doing. When he saw Hermione with a towel wrapped around her, he felt a sinking feeling in his stomach.

"Ron! What's going on? Is something wrong?" She asked, stepping in front of Draco. Ron tried to speak, but the reality of the situation was too overwhelming. _They were having sex._ His mind was screaming.

"Never mind, Hermione. I think I was sleep walking." He replied coldly. Before she could say anything else, he had turned and hurried down the stairs. Harry was waiting for him at the portrait hole.

"How did it go, mate?" He asked. Ron shot him a glare, and Harry sighed. "What happened?"

"Just when I gathered up the courage to tell Hermione that I'm getting over it, he has to ruin it all."

"What did Malfoy do?"

"They answered the door in _towels_, Harry! You know what that means?" Ron fumed.

"I'm sorry, mate. We'll try again tomorrow."

"No. We won't. I can't do it again, Harry. If it bothers me so much to see them together, then maybe I'm really not getting over it."

"Ron, I'm sure you can talk things out with Hermione-"

"I'm tired, Harry. I don't want to think about this anymore. After tomorrow, I won't have to worry about it ever again." Ron stormed through the portrait hole. Harry ran his hands through his hair.

"God, Hermione. I hope you know what you're doing."


	13. Heir to the Throne

Chapter Thirteen:

The Heir to the Throne

Hermione woke up first. It was still early. Draco was sleeping peacefully, and she tried her best not to disturb him. Pulling on her red silk robe, she slipped into her own room and dug through her trunk. Finally she pulled out her laptop. She had figured out over the summer how to access the wizarding world web. Piecing together things that Evelyn had said in conversation, Hermione had come up with a theory. The problem was, she didn't know how to prove it. She hadn't told Draco, because she didn't want to get him all nervous if she ended up being wrong. She typed quickly, doing a search on the Malfoy family. She waited impatiently for the search to be completed. When the results had been listed, she clicked on one site with a family tree. The Malfoy family went back for generations, and it even proved their relation to Salazar Slytherin, but it didn't help her search at all. With her last hope, the internet, failing her, she went back into Draco's room. She sat down in his desk chair and put her head in her hands. As she scanned the books on the desk shelves, she paused at one in particular. The silver lettering on the spine read, _The Legacy of Lucius Malfoy_. She wrinkled her nose in disgust. _Who would want to waste their time reading a book about one of the most evil men in the world?_ As soon as that thought crossed her mind, she yanked the book off of the shelf and went back into her room. The book opened with a key, which was not provided. She examined the lock and a thought struck her. Quietly she slipped back into Draco's room and took the ring she gave him for Christmas off of his dresser. She wanted to shout out loud when the ring unlocked the book. Eagerly she opened to the first page. After the first few pages, she was bored. She scanned through almost half of it when suddenly her eyes froze on a page.

"Oh my god." She whispered, ripping the page out of the book. She turned around and started to run into Draco's room, but a sudden cold feeling blanketed her and everything went dark. She turned around and saw her room. Confused, she started walking towards it, but she collided with an invisible surface. _Glass..._ she thought, fear suddenly clawing at her mind. _I'm in a mirror._

When Draco woke up alone, he rubbed his eyes and sat up. He figured Hermione was already in the common room. He was disappointed that he couldn't secretly prepare their last breakfast in Hogwarts. Then he noticed the parchment taped to the door. He squinted at it and walked over to the door.

Dear Draco,

I went to the Gryffindor tower to make amends with Ron. It may take awhile, so I'll see you at graduation. I love you.

Love,

Hermione

He frowned in disappointment. He had wanted to share their last morning at Hogwarts together. But he knew how much it meant to her to have her best friends at her wedding, so he understood why she needed to go. Breakfast arrived and he ate alone. After breakfast, he decided to go down to find Professor Snape. He wanted to thank him for recommending him to his colleagues. On his way down the stairs, he spotted Evelyn and Pansy talking in a corner. He narrowed his eyes and strained his ears to hear what they were saying. Evelyn caught sight of him and she smiled sweetly in his direction. He almost stumbled over himself in surprise. Pansy gave him a smile as well, before she resumed talking to Evelyn. He had the strangest feeling that they were up to something. When Draco reached the dungeons, Snape was no where in sight. Slightly disappointed, Draco decided to write him a letter instead. When he reached his room, he noticed that his books were leaning. Curiously, he inspected the shelf. He went through them and was puzzled to find _The Legacy of Lucius Malfoy_ missing. He searched his entire room and found no trace of the book. He had never opened it. He couldn't figure out how. It was a waste of space, but he had accidentally packed it this year. Following a hunch, he opened the door to Hermione's room. The book was lying open on her bed. He stared at it in confusion. _How did she figure out how to open it?_ He wondered, approaching the book suspiciously. Something metal fell out of the cover, and he picked it up. _The ring Hermione gave me opens this damn book?_ His head spun in utter confusion. He ran his fingers along the frayed edge of a page that was missing. _Did Hermione take it? And why?_ Reading only a few pages of the book, he couldn't fathom why she would want to rip out a page from such a dull book. By now his head hurt from all of his unanswered questions. Sighing, he went into the bathroom to take a shower.

"You're losing it, mate." He muttered to himself.

Draco left the dormitory with a nauseous feeling in his stomach. There was still no sight or word from Hermione, and it was time for the graduating year to report to the Quidditch field. He was starting to worry about her. He didn't think it would take this long for her to straighten things out with Ron. Not realizing what he was doing, he headed towards the Gryffindor tower. He arrived just as he saw Potter and Weasley exiting.

"Potter! Weasley! Where is she?" He asked. His heart sank when they gave him a blank stare.

"What do you mean where is she? Are you talking about Hermione?" Potter asked, his eyes suddenly sharp and alert.

"She wasn't here this morning?" Draco asked, but he already knew the answer.

"I thought she was in your bed this morning." Weasley muttered, not bothering to hide his anger. Draco wisely chose to ignore him.

"Why did you think that she would be here?" Potter ignored Weasley as well. Draco reached into his pocket and pulled out the note from Hermione.

"This was on my bedroom door this morning." He paused letting them read it. Potter glanced up at Draco suspiciously.

"Is this some sort of joke?"

"Potter, does it look like I'm joking?"

"Well, where do you think she is?"

"I don't-" Draco began, but stopped short when he saw Evelyn and Pansy wandering down to the Quidditch field. Potter followed his gaze, confused.

"They know?" He asked, puzzled. Draco groaned.

"Don't just stand there, Potter! Let's go!"

"Go where?"

"Just follow me." Draco bolted towards the stairs, Potter on his heels. They ran all the way down to the entrance hall where Draco stopped to catch his breath.

"What's the plan?" Potter asked, breathlessly.

"I'm going to find Hermione. You stall the ceremony."

"Why? Shouldn't we just tell Dumbledore?"

"Do you ever tell Dumbledore before you rush off to save the day? Just do it, Potter. What ever punishment Dumbledore would give Evelyn wouldn't be good enough." Potter reluctantly agreed.

"You know where she is?" He asked, uncertainly.

"No. But I have an idea. Get stalling, Potter." Draco commanded and ran towards the dungeons. Snape was still absent from his office, but it was better that way. Draco grabbed a handful of Floo Powder and tossed it into the fire.

"Malfoy Manor." He shouted, and he was whisked away to his home. Every room was dark as he searched the entire upstairs. He got to the last room in the hallway. It was never used. Never opened. The door handle was rusted, but it creaked open when Draco tried it. The room was white, and all the furniture was covered in white sheets. Except for a full length mirror that stood in the middle of the room. Fear danced up his spine as he stepped towards the mirror. When he looked into the reflecting glass, his heart paused. Staring back at him was Hermione. When she caught sight of him, she screamed at him, trying to get him to leave, but he couldn't hear her. Draco heard a noise behind him and he whipped around.

"It took you all morning to realize that she was gone?" Evelyn smirked at him. Draco felt his hands balling up into fists.

"Let her go."

"I can't do that, Draco. You want to know why I can't?" She paused, waiting for him to reply. He just stared her down with as much hatred as he could muster. "You gave her that engagement ring."

"You're not making any sense, Evelyn." She grinned unpleasantly and walked over to the mirror which held Hermione prison.

"That's right. I managed to capture the mudblood before she had a chance to tell you anything. Good. That makes this a lot more fun." Draco looked around, trying to find something to smash the mirror with. Evelyn followed his eyes and chuckled.

"I thought you were supposed to be smart." Draco glared at her, and she sighed. "Let's see if she knows what you're doing wrong." Evelyn pulled out her wand and muttered the counter course to the Silencing Charm. Draco felt his heart wrench when he heard her frightened voice.

"Don't smash the mirror, Draco! If you break it, you'll kill me!" She cried frantically. Evelyn chuckled and shook her head.

"A mudblood has superior knowledge to a pureblood? How sad."

"Why did you take her?" Draco demanded.

"I thought I already explained this. You're going to marry her. I can't just let her live." Draco felt his head start to hurt again with unanswered questions. Then he turned to Hermione.

"Why did you take my father's book?"

"I was looking for something. She has it!" Hermione pointed at the paper in Evelyn's hand. Draco noticed it for the first time, and remembered the frayed edge in the book. He narrowed his eyes at it and stepped towards Evelyn. Her violet eyes glittered dangerously.

"The answer was under your nose the entire time, and you never saw it."

"I couldn't open it!"

"She gave you the key, didn't she?"

"I didn't know it was the key. Neither did she."

"That's why I thought my plan was fool proof. She wasn't supposed to find out."

"You're psychotic." Draco whispered in disbelief.

"There's a reason for my madness. Believe me."

"Then what is it? You've kept me in suspense here for the past twenty minutes. Why do you want us dead?"

"Because she's-" Hermione started to cry out, but Evelyn pointed her wand at the mirror, menacingly.

"I can shatter it with one word, mudblood. Don't make me do it."

"You're going to do it anyway!" Hermione spat, tears streaming down her cheeks. Draco tried to reach to her, but the dividing glass stopped him. Frustrated that he couldn't comfort Hermione, he glared at Evelyn.

"Tell me why you want us dead, Evelyn." Draco demanded. Evelyn sighed and sat down on one of the covered couches.

"Do you know where we are, Draco? Do you know what room this is?" Draco glanced around at the furniture.

"An extra bedroom."

"My mother used to sleep in this very room. You see that crib? That's where I slept."

"So your mother got pregnant, didn't have a husband to support her, and worked for my father to support you?"

"Not exactly, Draco. You see the father of her child was supporting her, in a more secretive fashion. He didn't support her for long after he found out that her child was a girl. He gave her a week to find another job."

"Generous of him." Evelyn shot him a fierce look before continuing.

"A few months later, the same man who fathered her child had another child with his wife. This child was a boy, so they kept him and raised him. Do you know what this child's name was?" She paused, watching Draco's face. He kept a stoic expression, even though he was feeling sick. "Draco Malfoy."

"You're my half sister."

"And because I am your half sister, I am entitled to the Malfoy fortune. That is, if all the _legal_ heirs have passed away. Azkaban took away your father for me. I helped your mother along a little bit-" Draco felt a sudden burning hatred spill into his blood.

"You murdered my mother?"

"She was miserable anyway."

"You fucking bitch!" Draco bellowed, grabbing her by the shoulders and shoving her against a wall. Sparks shot out of the tip of her wand and grazed the side of the mirror. Hermione screamed, thinking that she was about to die. Draco released Evelyn at once and turned around to make sure Hermione was all right.

"So the mudblood read your father's book. The story of that affair was explained. My name and birth date recorded. She found it and was on her way to tell you when she walked into the mirror. Lucky I got there in time. If she had found you first, I might not have been able to capture her. And now I get to destroy you both at the same time. Or maybe I'll kill you first so the mudblood can watch you die."

"We're not married yet. She doesn't have to be killed."

"Well now she has to be killed because she knows too much."

"Cast a memory charm and let her go."

"Draco, stop it. If you're going to die, then I'm going to die as well." Hermione insisted, her voice breaking. Draco wanted to plead with her, but he knew she wouldn't listen to him.

"You might have a point, Draco. Maybe I should let the mudblood go free."

"Let her go, and I'm yours to kill."

"I think I'll kill you before I let her go. I want her to have one last horrible memory before I wipe the slate clean."

"I need to know that you'll be true to your word. I need to know that when you're done killing me, you let her go."

"You have my word, Draco."

"I can't trust your word, Evelyn. You've deceived me before." Draco continued, buying time. He didn't know for how much longer he could stall. It wouldn't be smart to just reach for his wand in a quick motion. Evelyn would shoot him down before he could say anything. So very slowly, as he dragged their conversation out, his right hand slipped into his robes. When he finally found the wand in his cloak pocket, he prepared himself for his sudden attack. Evelyn was still going on and on about how it didn't matter that he couldn't trust her, that he had to take her word for it since she was in control. In the time it took to blink, Draco had whipped out his wand.

"EXPELLIARMUS!" He shouted, and Evelyn's wand flew out of her hand. It fell to the ground several feet away from both of them. The blast knocked Evelyn over the back of the couch and onto the floor. Draco dove to the floor to retrieve her wand.

"What's the incantation?" He demanded, pointing his wand and her when she had gotten to her feet. She smirked at him.

"Go ahead, Draco. Kill me. If you do, you'll never know how to get her out of the mirror. You'll be married to a reflection for the rest of your life. And your child will live in a mirror for their entire life as well." Draco's hardened expression froze and softened.

"My child?"

"I was going to tell you, Draco, but I didn't get the chance." Hermione suddenly spoke up. Draco felt unexpectedly happier.

"When did you find out?"

"I did a quick test yesterday." Evelyn started to advance on Draco while he was distracted with Hermione, but Draco was too quick for her.

"Nice try. Tell me the incantation." Draco demanded. Evelyn laughed unpleasantly.

"Like I said. I'm not going to tell you. So you can just kill me, and force your little mudblood bride to live the rest of her life in a mirror with your own child." Then Draco thought of it. He kept his eyes on Evelyn as he spoke to Hermione.

"I'm going to look in the library." Then he raised his wand quickly. "Petrificus totalus." He muttered. Evelyn went rigid and fell to the floor.

"Please hurry, Draco. We can miss the graduation ceremony." Hermione called after him. He grinned at her devotion to school, even when it was over. Draco flung open the doors to the library and rushed to the dictionary of counter curses. He flipped to the index and ran his finger down the page until he saw _mirrors, page 1129_. He practically ripped the book apart to find page 1129. When he finally found the page, a shrill scream pierced the air. Draco ripped out the paragraph on mirrors and dashed out into the hallway. As he neared the room where Hermione and Evelyn were, he heard the most sickening sound in the entire world. Shattering glass. Draco increased his speed, but he slowed down when he reached the door frame. Evelyn was standing over the smashed mirror, small cuts all over her arms. Draco felt devastation before anger. But when anger finally did possess him, he lunged at Evelyn. His momentum forced both of them into the windows, and more glass shattered. When Draco hit the ground with a nauseating thud, all he could think about was getting up and going back upstairs. Evelyn was no longer thinking. She had hit the ground head first, and was killed on impact. Pain shot up his spine and exploded in his head when he attempted to sit up. The physical pain didn't even hold a candle to the emotional pain that ripped through him. _She can't be dead. She couldn't have died._ He forced himself to think positive thoughts as he dragged himself to his feet. He felt like he was walking on two broken legs, but he staggered towards the mansion regardless. Stumbling up the stairs, tears started to fill his eyes. As he came closer to the white room, tear drops fell and hit the cold stone floor. He collapsed to the floor next to the broken shards of glass. He saw only his face in each and every piece. Thinking that if he pieced it together, she'd come back, he started trying to fit pieces together. Ten minutes later, he was finding it pointless. The glass from the mirror mixed with the glass from the windows, and it was hard to differentiate. Sensing that his Hermione was never coming back, Draco went to his room and gathered some Floo Powder.

"Severus Snape's office at Hogwarts." He choked out. When he hit the dungeon floors, Snape was seated at his desk. Upon seeing Draco falling out of the fire, he jumped to his feet and helped Draco stand.

"What happened, Draco? Where were you?" Draco couldn't find the voice to speak. Sobs interrupted his words, and finally he gave up. "The ceremony begins in five minutes, you need to get cleaned up. And where is Miss Granger?" Just the mention of her name, and Draco broke down into sobs. Sensing that something was terribly wrong, Snape escorted Draco to the hospital wing and went off in search of Professor Dumbledore immediately. The headmaster was talking to McGonagall when he approached, smiling pleasantly.

"Headmaster, we have a situation."

"What is it, Severus? Have our Head students found time in their busy schedules to come to their graduation ceremony?"

"Something is wrong, headmaster. Draco just came spilling out of my fireplace, cut up and disheveled. I tried to ask him what had happened, but he couldn't speak. When I mentioned Hermione, he almost went into hysterics."

"Where is he now?" Dumbledore asked, suddenly serious.

"I took him to the hospital wing."

"What about Hermione? Where is she?"

"I don't know, headmaster. She didn't come back with him, and he couldn't say anything about her."

"Perhaps when he's feeling better he'll be able to tell us what happened." Dumbledore stood up and started walking towards the castle. "Minerva, inform the students that their graduation ceremony has been delayed momentarily." Professor McGonagall nodded and went to the crowd of seventh year students. Dumbledore and Snape walked back up to the castle in silence. When they reached the hospital wing, Madam Pomfrey was trying to calm down an extremely distraught Draco Malfoy.

"Headmaster, he won't calm down! I've been trying to give him a sedative for the past ten minutes." Dumbledore approached Draco, who was sobbing so uncontrollably, he seemed to be having trouble breathing.

"Draco, please stay still while Madam Pomfrey attends to your wounds."

"No! She's still out there! I know it! We have to go find her!"

"Draco, calm down. Who is still out there?"

"She's out there! It's all my fault! I took too long!" Draco shouted in frustration, knocking over a hospital bed. Dumbledore exchanged looks with Snape.

"I don't like to do this, but it appears to be necessary. Severus?" Dumbledore nodded at Draco, and Snape pulled out his wand.

"Stupefy." He muttered, and Draco went still. Snape helped Madam Pomfrey lift Draco onto a hospital bed. Madam Pomfrey injected the sedative, and they waited for the Stunning Spell to wear off. When Draco finally came around, he looked around quickly.

"Is she here?"

"Is who here, Draco?"

"Is Hermione here?" The professors all exchanged glances, and Draco made an attempt to sit up. "Please tell me that she's here." He looked expectantly at each professor in turn. Dumbledore was the first to speak.

"Draco, what happened?"

"There's no time, professor. We have to find her."

"Where would she be, Draco?" Draco ran his hand through his hair, tears threatening his eyes again.

"She could be anywhere. But she can't be-" Draco stopped, his face paled. Snape and Dumbledore looked worriedly at each other.

"Is Hermione in danger?"

"I don't know, professor! I don't know where she is." Snape summoned up the courage to ask the question that no one else would ask.

"Is she dead?"

"No! She can't be dead! She has to be alive somewhere!" Draco shouted, as though trying to convince himself. Then his head dropped into his hands and he sobbed. Dumbledore took Snape aside.

"Get in touch with the ministry. Find out where Draco had come from when he used the Floo powder. Once that has been done, go there and search for Hermione. Keep the rest of us updated. I want to talk to Draco to see if he can tell us anything." Dumbledore ordered. Snape nodded and left the hospital. Dumbledore turned back to the unstable wreck that used to be Draco Malfoy. It seemed as though he had abandoned thought. Madam Pomfrey seemed unsure of what to do.

"Poppy, fetch Draco some chocolate and butter beer." Dumbledore smiled pleasantly at her, and the Mediwitch left.

"Now, Draco. Tell me what happened."

"We need to find her."

"Professor Snape is out looking for her right now, Draco. You just need to tell me what happened so we know where to start looking."

"Malfoy Manor...she took her there."

"Who?" Draco's eyes turned hard as steel and twice as cold. Dumbledore watched the anger burning through him, powerful fury that he had never seen before.

"Evelyn Channings. She killed her." Draco stared out the window, tears accumulating in his eyes.

"Evelyn Channings killed Hermione?"

"She trapped Hermione in a mirror and shattered it." Draco shifted his gaze to look at the headmaster. "Then I killed her."


	14. On the Outside Looking In

Chapter Fourteen:

On the Outside Looking In

After Madam Pomfrey had tended to Draco's injuries, he bolted out of the hospital wing. He needed to tell Potter. Crowds of seventh year students were pouring back into the school, grumbling complaints about the postponed graduation ceremony. Draco forced his way through them and finally spotted Potter and Weasley. He felt a lump rising in his throat as he tried to find a delicate way to tell them what had happened. Potter spotted him approaching and his face paled.

"Malfoy, what happened? Where's Hermione?" That was all it took. Draco's eyes filled up with tears, and though he tried to blink them away, they were relentless. Ron's mouth fell open and his eyes widened.

"You let her die?" Guilt ripped through Draco, and he leaned against the wall for support. Harry shot Ron a glare.

"We don't know anything yet, Ron. Malfoy, is she really-" Harry broke off, unable to complete his sentence. Draco still wanted to believe that she was alive, but he needed to force himself to accept reality. Wordlessly, he nodded. Harry looked devastated, and his eyes moistened. Ron paled and seemed to be speechless. Professor Snape approached the three broken students carefully.

"Sorry to interrupt, but Professor Dumbledore wants you to come with us when we go to Malfoy Manor." Snape addressed Draco, who nodded weakly.

"What about us? We were her friends too." Ron found his voice. For once, Snape didn't feel an ounce of disdain towards the red-haired boy.

"I'm sorry, Weasley, but you and Potter should return to the Gryffindor tower until further notice." Ron looked like he wanted to argue further, but Harry grabbed his arm and ushered him away. Draco followed Snape to the dungeons. He felt like he was in a trance as he stepped into the fire and was whisked back to Malfoy Manor. He stepped out of the fireplace and saw Dumbledore was already there, examining the broken mirror on the floor. Draco's heart wrenched as he remembered Hermione screaming just before the glass shattered. He should have made sure Evelyn was properly stunned. His eyes moved to the shattered window. It didn't bother him that he had killed Evelyn by pushing them both through the window. She killed Hermione. She deserved death. Walking carelessly over the broken glass, Draco moved towards the window. He gathered the courage to look down at the corpse of the one responsible for the death of his fiance and his unborn child. A smile almost made it across his face as he recalled the moment when Hermione had told him that she was pregnant with his child. He had almost forgotten for a moment that she was trapped in a mirror and Evelyn wanted to destroy them both. Including a child that he had created with the girl he loved.

"Draco, could you tell us exactly what happened?" Dumbledore asked quietly. Draco stared into the sky blankly.

"Evelyn is my half sister. My father impregnated her mother. When he found out that her child was a girl, he threw her out. Then I was born. My father died in Azkaban. Evelyn killed my mother, and then she came after me. Because we were engaged, Hermione would be a legal heir if I died, so Evelyn had to kill her as well. Hermione had found out who Evelyn was, and she was on her way to tell me when Evelyn trapped her in a mirror. I found a note that I assumed was from Hermione, saying that she was in the Gryffindor common room for the morning. When I asked Potter and Weasley about it, they said she hadn't been there all morning. I had a feeling that Evelyn had taken her here. I don't really understand why, but I knew that they had come here. When I got here, I learned who Evelyn really was. I stunned her, but improperly, because when I left to find the counter curse for the mirror spell, Evelyn regained consciousness and shattered the mirror." Draco paused to take a few deep breaths. The sound of Hermione's scream rang out clear in his mind. He had been too late to save her. _What was I thinking? Leaving Hermione alone with Evelyn was the most idiotic thing I could have done. It's my fault she's dead._

"Take your time, Draco." Dumbledore murmured quietly. When Draco was ready, he continued.

"I was so upset at Evelyn, I just lunged at her. We went through the window, and she landed on her head. I was more fortunate. I managed to walk back up here and try to piece the mirror back together in a vain attempt to bring Hermione back. Finally I just gave up and returned to Hogwarts." Draco trailed off into silence. Dumbledore and Snape exchanged sad glances. Draco looked at the floor where all of the broken glass sparkled like diamonds.  
"What are the odds that she somehow survived?" Draco asked in a soft voice. But he knew that she had to be gone.  
  
Hermione stumbled forward with her hands held out in front of her. It was pitch black and she couldn't see anything. Everything was silent except for her footsteps and breathing. It got colder with every step she took, and the thin red silk robe she wore didn't make her situation any more bearable. But she wasn't thinking about the cold. She wasn't thinking about the complete darkness. All she could think was that she needed to find Draco. She needed to find another mirror. Her search was taking longer than she could afford. She had had to make a quick decision when Evelyn had rushed at the mirror. There was only one way she could have a chance to live. Running into the pitch blackness behind her. As fast as she could, she bolted into the darkness. A faint light had appeared and she ran towards it. She didn't recognize the room which the mirror overlooked, but it was her safe zone. Behind her, the mirror she had been trapped in had been shattered. If she had not found another mirror, she would have shattered too. Hermione had never read much about mirrors. She had never even known that all mirrors are connected, and one could travel through mirrors. But the spells were difficult and sometimes went horribly wrong. Also, it was near impossible to find the desired mirror to exit through. Each dim light Hermione saw, she got excited, thinking that it would be a mirror in Hogwarts or another room in Draco's house. Sometimes soft voices could be heard through the mirrors. She had high hopes that she would suddenly recognize one, but she never did, and sometimes the voices spoke foreign languages. The more dim lights she came across, the more disappointed she became when she discovered that they were on the opposite side of the world. Warm tears began rolling down her cold cheeks. _I can't die here. I need to marry Draco and have his child. I need to live happily ever after with the man I love._ She kept telling herself. She had been absolutely thrilled when she had seen the immediate results of her pregnancy test. She could not wait to tell Draco, but every time she thought about it, she wondered if maybe he didn't want children. What if he left her because he didn't want to have any children? She had so many petty doubts, but they stopped her from telling him about her condition. Now she wished that she had told him the minute she had gotten the results. The look in his eyes when she had told him just two hours before had been incomparable. Despite their situation, he seemed proud and happy. She wouldn't take that away from him. Her footsteps increased, growing faster as she thought of her motivation. She would find a Hogwarts mirror if it took forever. But she wouldn't deny Draco what he deserved. A loving wife, and an adoring child.

Harry left Ron in the common room. Ron had been staring blankly at the fire since they had returned to the Gryffindor tower. He didn't speak, he didn't move. The only way Harry knew he was still alive was that he would blink every so often. Finally unable to stand the dead silence, Harry retreated to the dormitory. It was empty. Most of the Gryffindors were in the common room, complaining about the delay of the graduation ceremony. There was some talk of there not being a ceremony or graduation ball at all. None of those things bothered Harry. His thoughts were with Hermione. There were so many questions that he had that he needed answered. But Draco had been whisked away before Harry had had a chance to even recover from the initial shock. The thing Harry wanted to know the most was how she had died. How had someone managed to kill the smartest witch in Hogwarts? And why? Why would someone want to kill her? She was the sweetest person Harry had ever known, and he couldn't fathom why someone would want to get rid of her. Ever since their second year, Harry had decided that it should be his responsibility to make sure that Hermione was safe. He enjoyed acting as her older brother. It stopped him from feeling something more for her. After an extremely awkward conversation with Ron at the beginning of their second year, they had both come to an agreement. Neither of them would allow feelings to develop for Hermione in an effort to preserve their friendship. Harry had stayed true to his promise, and he imagined that Ron had done the same. But now that Hermione was gone, Harry felt such strong sadness that he couldn't deny loving her more than he allowed himself to admit. It was a hidden desire that he smothered with his overwhelming feelings for Ginny. It wasn't that he didn't love Ron's little sister, because he did. He just felt a little something for Hermione as well. Since he knew that he shouldn't get involved with her anyway, it hadn't been too difficult to squash the tiny voice inside of him that professed his love for Hermione. Now that she was dead, he decided it was time to face those feelings that he had shunned for too many years. Deciding a shower might help him to think clearly, Harry grabbed his towel and bath robe. Closing his eyes under the steamy water, Hermione's smiling face persistently occupied his thoughts.  
  
Hermione felt her legs starting to weaken as she stumbled through the never ending blackness behind the mirror. She was shivering and her teeth chattered in the frigid darkness. The only sounds were the soft voices coming from several mirrors at the same time and her footsteps. She kept going past dim lights that led out to another mirror. She knew what the odds were of her finding a mirror in Hogwarts. After looking for what seemed like years, the closest she had come to Hogwarts was a mirror in Buckingham Palace. _Eight...nine...ten._ She counted off in her head. Slowly she approached the tenth mirror and peered out into the room. As soon as she determined that it wasn't a room of Hogwarts, she disappeared quickly and continued walking. She caught sight of the next dimly lit window to the outside and counted off. _One...two...three._ Suddenly her legs gave way and she tumbled to the cold stone floor. Wincing slightly, she sat up and hugged her knees to her chest. Her whole body trembled in the arctic temperatures and her eyes filled with tears. Her search was beginning to seem hopeless. A warm tear streaked down her cheek and soon froze. When she had recovered the strength to stand, she lifted herself off the ground and glanced at the dim light. Forgetting where she was in her count, she started over again, hoping that her recount didn't affect her search. After counting out fifteen sets of ten, Hermione sank to her knees in defeat. It seemed as though she was actually dead. She was cold enough. And no matter how hard she tried, she was finally beginning to understand that she was going to die inside the network of mirrors. That's when she heard it. A voice that she recognized. She would know that horrible singing voice anywhere. Springing suddenly to her feet, Hermione rushed forward trying to follow the sound. Instead of every tenth mirror, she went back to checking every single mirror as she ran into the darkness. When finally she came to the mirror where the singing was at its loudest, she exhaled a sigh of relief and happiness. The boys bathroom in the Gryffindor tower was a duplicate of the girls bathroom. Hermione recognized it immediately, and her heart soared. A shadowed figure was in the shower, singing loudly and horribly, but to Hermione it was the most beautiful sound in the world. She took a deep breath. She had been preparing for this moment for hours.

"Harry! Harry, look in the mirror!" She screamed, desperately. He didn't stop singing, and Hermione didn't stop screaming at him. Then she finally grasped with renewed disappointment that he couldn't hear a damn thing she was saying. Her voice was probably muffled as it is, and his loud singing didn't exactly help. _No matter. I'll just wait until he gets out of the shower and sees me._ She breathed deeply, trying to calm herself down. It was going to be all right. Then the condensation appeared.

Harry didn't exactly care who heard him when he sang. It was no news to him that he sucked, but he didn't care. Still singing, he stepped out of the shower and toweled off. He glanced at the mirror, but it was covered with condensation from his steamy shower. He saw the outline of a dark figure, but he assumed it was just him. He dressed and left the bathroom without giving the mirror another glance. When he stopped singing, he heard a tiny voice. _That sounds like...no. It can't be._ Curiously, he stepped closer to the bathroom and listened.

"Harry! Harry, come back!" The tiny frantic voice was screeching. Harry shook his head and wondered if this is what happens to people after they lose someone so close to them. Deciding that it was normal to hear Hermione in his head, he walked back down to the common room. Ron was still staring at the fire. Harry sighed and attempted to have a heart to heart conversation with his best friend.

"How's it going, mate?"

"My best friend is dead. How are things for you?" He replied in a monotone. Harry rolled his eyes.

"Look, Ron. I know you're upset. So am I. But you can't stay like this for the rest of your life." Ron shifted his eyes from the fire to Harry.

"She died, and I didn't even get the chance to say that I'm sorry for shunning her like I did. She died thinking that I hated her. If only I could have told her-"

"Don't think about that now, Ron. There's nothing either of us can do about that. Just try to think about something else."

"I can't. Hell, I'm going to take a nap. Wake me up when Dumbledore calls us down for the ceremony." Ron mumbled standing up shakily and walking towards the stairs. Harry followed quickly to make sure Ron got there all right. Twice, Harry had to stop Ron from crashing to the ground. As soon as Ron was in bed, Harry decided that maybe a nap would be good for him. He settled down into his sheets and closed his eyes. It wasn't very long before both boys sat bolt upright in their beds. Harry looked over at Ron.

"You heard it too?" Ron nodded, wordlessly. Harry jumped out of his bed and headed for the bathroom; Ron was right behind. Harry stopped short in front of the mirror. Ron crashed right into Harry's back and cursed.

"Why'd you stop so fast, Harry? I could have fallen over." Ron grumbled angrily. Harry couldn't say anything. He just kept staring at his reflection. _It's your mind playing tricks on you, Harry. You and Ron are both bloody insane._

"Answer me honestly, Ron. Does my reflection resemble Hermione at all?" Ron was about to tell Harry that he was a nutter when he caught sight of the mirror.

"You know what, Harry? I think I've gone off the deep end."

"No you haven't, you gits! It's me! Hermione! Get me out of here, please!"

"You're supposed to be-"

"Dead? Well does it look like I'm dead to you? Go get McGonagall. NOW!" She exclaimed when neither of them moved. Harry and Ron scurried off faster than Harry's Firebolt. They charged out of the portrait hole and were dashing down a corridor when they slammed right into Professor McGonagall, knocking her to the floor.

"Potter! Weasley! What are you two _doing_?" She demanded quickly. Harry and Ron both grabbed her elbows and helped her up, breathing heavily. Then they both started talking at once, trying to explain everything as quickly as they could. McGonagall silenced them.

"Potter, explain yourselves."

"You see, professor, Hermione is alive. Ron and I heard a voice in our bathroom. When we went to check it out, there she was in the mirror! She looked like she could have been dead though. Her lips were blue, her face was pale, but she yelled at us to go get help." McGonagall paled and headed swiftly towards the portrait hole. Harry and Ron followed behind as she entered the bathroom. They heard her gasp suddenly as she saw the mirror.

"Hermione? Are you all right?"

"I w-will be if you'll g-get me out of here." Hermione shivered. McGonagall wasted no time in pulling out her wand and muttering an extremely long and difficult counter curse. Then the professor reached her hand through the mirror and grabbed Hermione's, dragging her out. McGonagall hurried into the boy's dormitory and found a cloak. She wrapped it quickly around Hermione's shoulders and started ushering her down the stairs.

"You need to get to the hospital wing, quickly."

"No! I need to f-find Draco! Where is he?" Hermione whispered, stopping suddenly. McGonagall grabbed her arm and pulled her down into the hallway.

"I'll inform Mister Malfoy after you're safe in the hospital wing."

"I need to t-talk to him now." Hermione ripped her hand out of McGonagall's firm grip. Having an idea of where Draco was, Hermione bolted away, running as fast as her numb legs could carry her. She only hoped that she wasn't too late.

It was the third time Draco was staring longingly at the ground that was far below him. This time, he was certain that he would jump. After all, he had nothing else to live for. He was now completely alone in the world. His whole family was gone. Hermione was gone. He had no friends...no one. Nothing that would make him want to live. Not wanting to experience anymore pain or torment, Draco hopped up onto the wall and looked down. Then he looked up into the heavens and sighed.

"I'm coming, love." He whispered. The first few moments during which he was falling, a shrill scream pierced the air. A familiar voice.

"Draco! NO!" Hermione shrieked, arriving just as Draco let his weight drag him forward, over the wall. She rushed to the edge and looked over. He was still falling, but he had twisted when he had heard the scream. He saw her. He saw her eyes filled with fear and pain. He saw her hair blowing in the soft summer breeze. He saw deep into her soul, where she was thinking over and over, _I can't lose him again._ Realizing the idiotic mistake he was making, he quickly searched his pockets for his wand. The ground was coming ever closer. There wasn't much time left. Hermione left the tower and bolted quickly down the hall ways. She bounced down the stairs, trying desperately not to trip and fall. Students who were lingering in the halls stared at her as she passed. She burst through the front doors and sprinted across the open field. Tears came to her eyes as she saw a crumpled heap on the grass. The warm summer sun slowly warmed her body, but she still felt cold.

"No, no, no, no, no..." She muttered over and over again as she came ever closer to Draco's body. She slowed as she approached, and dropped to her knees. His eyes were closed and his mouth was parted. Too afraid to check for a pulse, Hermione just sat numbly in the grass, crying.

"I was too late." She whispered, wanting to smack herself for not being faster. A tear drop hit his face, and he flinched. Startled by the sudden movement, Hermione stopped sobbing immediately. She stared silently at Draco's face.

"Draco? Draco, sweetie...are you awake?" She whispered carefully, leaning towards his face to examine him closer. Before she knew what was happening, Draco had leaned up quickly and claimed her lips with his. When he pulled away, Hermione just stared at him in shock. He smiled weakly back at her.

"I missed you." He murmured, reaching up to brush hair out of her eyes. Hermione couldn't find her voice at first. When she did, it came out as a whisper.

"I missed you more." Draco managed a chuckle.

"You wish."

It was dusk when the graduation ceremony finally ended. Immediately after Hermione had recovered in the hospital wing, Dumbledore started the ceremony. The sun was just beginning to disappear over the horizon. Hermione glanced at the massive building she had spent most of her past seven years at. Each year had its own special place in her thoughts. This last year, her seventh year, had been her favorite. Not only was she leaving Hogwarts engaged to Draco Malfoy, but she was leaving only to return in September as an intern. On their way down to the Quidditch field, McGonagall had proposed the idea. Hermione had stopped walking in surprise, and she quickly accepted the offer. Sighing with a mixture of sadness and excitement, Hermione entered the school for the last time as a student. The masses of graduated students suffocated her as she tried desperately to find Draco. He was doing the same, and finally he caught sight of her. He smiled faintly as he watched her standing on the tips of her toes, looking around. Pushing through the sea of people, he tapped her on the shoulder.

"Looking for someone?" He asked. She grinned at him.

"Can you believe we're done with Hogwarts?" She looked around at the paintings and tapestries that hung from the walls, noticing them in detail for the first time.

"You're not. You get to come back here."

"You could become a teacher as well. Then you could come back here with me." Draco shook his head.

"Nah. My passion lies with potion making. Snape said that there's a potions ministry office that I should look into." The crowds began to thin as more and more students disappeared down different hallways, heading towards their designated towers. Soon, only Draco and Hermione were walking back to their dormitory. The knight in their portrait nodded to them.

"Although I hate to admit it, I am going to miss you, sir." He glanced down at Draco, who bowed slightly. "And you, m'lady, I wish you happiness." Hermione curtsied and walked forward into the common room.

"I always liked him." Hermione commented, heading to her room.

"I'll meet you back out here in fifteen." Draco replied, walking towards his own room. Hermione was happy to be able to wear her masquerade costume again. She loved it just as much the second time she put it on. She twirled around in front of the mirror a few times before picking up her wand to style her hair. As she went to charm her mask to her face, she spotted a flash of white. Looking again, she smiled at Draco's feathered hat. She picked it up and carried it out to the common room. Surprisingly, Draco spent more time preparing than Hermione did. When he finally emerged, they both smiled at each other, remembering the first time they had encountered.

"I never got a chance to tell you how beautiful you look in that dress." Draco looked her over as he had in September. Hermione blushed and handed him the hat.

"I never got a chance to give you your hat back."

"Well it doesn't matter now, does it? What's mine is yours." Hermione smiled and took his hand. They walked down the stairs to the Great Hall, which had been prepared for the ball. There weren't as many whispers as they walked into the hall hand in hand. Many people stared, and most girls looked on in jealousy. Ginny came up to the couple and threw her arms around Hermione's neck.

"You scared the crap out of me, Hermione!" She squealed, tightening her death grip. Hermione hugged the younger girl back, struggling to breathe.

"Sorry, Ginny. I have something to ask you that might make up for it." Ginny let go immediately and her eyes sparkled with excitement.

"What?"

"Would you do me the favor of being my maid of honor at my wedding?" Ginny's jaw dropped. Hermione smiled at her. "Would you?"

"Of course I would, Hermione! Thank you so much for asking me!" Ginny squealed excitedly, throwing her arms around Hermione's neck again. "Owl me for details, okay?"

"Actually, I was thinking that maybe you could come to Malfoy Manor for a few days before the wedding so you can help me with the preparations." Hermione glanced quickly at Draco to make sure that it was all right for her to come. Draco nodded. Ginny gasped.

"Really? Oh that would be awesome! I'll talk to my mum about it when I get home and I'll owl you back."

"Great. Thanks, Ginny." Ginny smiled at the couple and skipped away to her group of friends. Hermione watched her tell them enthusiastically about her position in the wedding of the century. Draco kissed Hermione's cheek.

"I like her." He decided. Normally he didn't take much of a liking to the Weasley's, but the girl was sweet. Hermione nodded.

"She's an adorable girl. I knew you wouldn't mind my picking her to be my maid of honor."

"Even if I didn't like her, that's not my decision to make."

"Who's your best man going to be?" Hermione asked as they continued to walk towards the buffet table. Draco sighed.

"I don't know. I don't have very many friends, if you haven't noticed." Hermione squeezed his hand sympathetically.

"You don't have to have one." Draco nodded, but was silently thinking of everyone he knew and considering them for the position. He wanted their wedding to be perfect. Everything had to be just right. Without a best man, the ceremony wouldn't be picturesque. His eyes scanned the Great Hall, and landed on Harry Potter. He almost stopped walking at the thought. _Ask Potter to be my best man? That's absurd._ Then Draco looked at Hermione, who was smiling at some of her fellow Gryffindors. _It would make her happy._ Draco thought. Finally he decided that he would ask Potter to be his best man. Maybe it would be the end of a long lasting feud between them. And that would make Hermione even happier.

Draco danced with Hermione almost the entire night, but he was watching Potter out of the corner of his eye. The poor hero looked lonely next to a pale looking Ron Weasley. Draco didn't know what was the matter with him. Hermione was alive. That should have fixed the red-haired boy. But he was still depressed. It was starting to bother Draco. If he was going to ask Potter to be his best man, he should start being civil as soon as possible. Another song ended, and Hermione looked up at him.

"You're distracted, Draco." She murmured, staring into his eyes. He sighed. She knew him too well. Probably better than he even knew himself.

"Go dance with Harry." Draco made a point of speaking Harry's first name. He could see that Hermione noticed, because her eyes widened slightly.

"Are you sure?" She asked, dropping his hand. Draco wanted to shout out no. If he had it his way, she would never leave his arms. But he knew that that was being selfish, and that was the old Draco Malfoy. The new Draco Malfoy knew how to share.

"Yeah. We're spending the rest of our lives together. There will be plenty more dances to share." He replied, pushing her towards the sullen looking Harry Potter. She smiled and kissed him gently on the cheek before approaching her best friend. Harry looked up as she approached. He gave her a slight smile.

"You and Draco look good together." He commented. Hermione smiled at Harry's effort to accept her fiance.

"Thank you, Harry. That means a lot to me. Would you like to dance?" She asked, making Harry blush and look down at the floor.

"Uh, well I don't really...dance very well." Harry stuttered. Hermione waved this away with an impatient hand.

"Oh who cares? Come on. I'll help you. Besides, you danced with me at the masquerade ball in September."

"That was different." Harry interjected. Hermione raised her eyebrows at him.

"How?"

"It just was, okay?" He grumbled, but smiled at her. She sighed and grabbed his hand, dragging him to the dance floor.

"This is your last chance to dance with me at Hogwarts. Make it good." She reminded him, and he grinned sadly.

"It's hard to believe, isn't it?"

"Yeah. I can't believe it was seven years ago that we went after the Sorcerer's Stone." Hermione replied. Harry laughed.

"That was only seven years ago?"

"Shouldn't you, of all people, remember?"

"I suppose. Well when's the wedding? I need to know when to rent a tuxedo."

"June 21st. And I really appreciate you coming. Do you know if Ron is coming?" She asked the last part timidly. She was almost afraid to hear his response. Harry sighed and glanced over at Ron.

"You'd think that after he almost lost you that he'd find it in his heart to accept your marriage to Draco. But I don't think he's come around yet."

"I hope he does in time for the wedding. I really want him to come."

"I'll talk some sense into him, Hermione. Don't worry. Even if I have to stun him and put him in a straight jacket, I'll get him to your wedding." Hermione laughed.

"Thanks Harry. I'm so glad we got to be friends for all seven years here."

"Me too, Hermione. Promise to keep in touch after your wedding?"

"An owl a day."


	15. Til Death Do Us Part

Chapter Fifteen:

Till Death Do Us Part

Ginny arrived at the manor five days before the wedding. Upon seeing Hermione, the little red-head bolted towards her and caught her in a death grip.

"Hermione! I've missed you!" She exclaimed. Hermione laughed.

"You just saw me last week at graduation." Ginny let go and Hermione led her into the foyer. Ginny gasped as she looked around.

"Leaping hippogriffs, Hermione! This place is huge!" Her eyes widened as she peered into the study. "These rooms are three times the size of mine." Hermione felt a stab of guilt as she remembered how tiny the Weasley's house was. She decided to invite Ginny over to stay more often. Draco came strolling down the stairs and Hermione smiled as she saw him. She was never going to get tired of seeing his face every day.

"Hermione, your parents sent us a letter. They're coming up the day before the wedding." Draco handed her the letter. "Hello, Ginny. Welcome to the manor."

"Hi, Draco. Thanks for having me."

"Can my parents, as muggles, come stay here?"

"There's a simple incantation that I could perform so that they would be able to. Don't worry about it, love. I've got it all taken care of." Draco smiled and dropped a kiss on Hermione's forehead.

"Come on, Ginny. I'll show you your room." Hermione picked up one of Ginny's bags. Ginny followed Hermione up the stairs and into the second door on the left. Ginny dropped her trunk when she saw the room.

"By the gods! This is beautiful!" She whispered, looking around. Hermione smiled and put down Ginny's bag.

"I'll let you get settled in. When you're done, just come down to the dining room for dinner. You can just wear your night gown if you want. I usually do so I can go right to bed when I'm done. This wedding planning is exhausting." Hermione left Ginny alone and turned to go to her room. She walked right into Draco.

"Draco, you can't keep standing right where I'm going to walk into you!" He laughed and placed his hands on her lower back.

"Why not? It's easier to kiss you when you're surprised." He grinned before leaning down to kiss her. Hermione let him kiss her for awhile, then pushed him away gently.

"Draco, we have a guest." She nodded towards Ginny's room. Draco sighed.

"Does that mean we have a change of plans for tonight?" He asked, his mouth drooping into a frown. Hermione smiled.

"I'm already pregnant, Draco. Do you want to have twins?" She teased him. He raised his eyebrows and pulled her towards their bedroom.

"I wouldn't mind having twins. Triplets wouldn't be so bad either."

"Then you carry them for nine months and give birth." Draco laughed and eased her down onto the bed.

"I'll let you take care of that, as nature intended." He kissed her passionately and sank onto the bed next to her. She felt herself melting as his tongue worked magic in her mouth. Her hands tangled themselves in his hair and he pulled her closer. His fingers gently lifted the bottom of her shirt and started moving upwards. Suddenly a soft bell rang out, signaling that dinner was ready. Draco pulled away and groaned.

"Can't we skip dinner?" He asked, kissing her cheek and neck. Hermione sighed, enjoying the shivers working up and down her spine.

"We have a guest, Draco. Be a good host." She stood up and Draco followed suit.

"No more, guests, Hermione. Please."

"Everything has to stop when my parents get here, so enjoy this now." Hermione reminded him, fixing her hair in front of the mirror. Draco groaned in disappointment and ran his hands through his own hair.

"When do we get to be alone?"

"Our honeymoon, Draco. Don't forget that." Draco smiled.

"Oh yeah. I can't wait."

Ron stared out the window at the sun. The beautiful day contrasted so drastically to his mood. He heard footsteps coming up the stairs and he didn't bother to fix his appearance. He was still in his pajamas and his hair was sticking up in places. A soft knock came at the door, but he didn't answer. Finally the door creaked open. Ron didn't even look to see who had entered his room. It wasn't who he had expected when the person finally spoke.

"Ron? How's it going, mate?" Harry asked, carefully. Ron shifted his gaze to look at his best friend.

"Miserable."

"Come on. Summer is supposed to be fun. Especially the summer after our last year at Hogwarts. Let's go play some Quidditch in the backyard." Harry suggested, but Ron didn't move. He sighed and looked back out the window.

"No thanks, Harry. I'm just going to stay here. For the rest of my life."

"No you're not. Now I've had enough of this nonsense. What is going on with you, mate? I don't care how long it takes, but you are going to tell me what has been bothering you." Harry sat down on Ron's bed and stared at him determinedly. Ron attempted to stare his friend down, but finally he rolled his eyes.

"Fine, I'll tell you." He paused and took a deep breath. "I'm in love with Hermione." Harry's mouth fell open. Ron felt a huge weight lift off his shoulders as he spoke those words.

"How long have you been in love with her?"

"Since the third year. After she slapped Malfoy, I saw her in a different light." Ron answered in a far away tone. Harry felt his throat tighten as thought about his own feelings for Hermione. _No. I have no feelings for Hermione. I love Ginny._

"I can't go to her wedding, Harry. I can't watch her marry that piece of shit." Ron spat, his eyes turning suddenly dark as he thought about Draco Malfoy.

"She wants you to go, Ron. Can't you do this for her?" Harry felt bad about putting Ron on a guilt trip, but he had promised Hermione that Ron would go to her wedding.

"I'll think about it, Harry. But not for you, mate. I'll do it for her." Ron replied, just as Harry had hoped he would. Harry left his friend alone to think. And Ron did think. For hours and hours he stared into space, thinking of how to handle his situation. Yes it was true. Ron loved Hermione more than she would ever know. Even though they had fought so many times, he couldn't help loving her still. He had screamed at Ginny for being a part of the wedding.

"How could you support the bondage of your best friend to your worst enemy?" He had shouted at her.

"He's _your_ worst enemy, Ron! I think he's a gentleman to Hermione, and he'll take good care of her!" Ginny had fired back. Her last six words had cut him deep. _He'll take good care of her...yeah right._ Ron had no reason to trust Draco Malfoy. He certainly had no reason to trust him with Hermione. His mum hadn't been fond of Ginny participating in the wedding, but Hermione's persuasions led her to sending her daughter off to the manor. Harry had been surprised to find himself involved in the ceremony. A few days after graduation, he had received an owl from Draco inviting him to be his best man. Harry found this ironic, since he knew Draco had never considered him a friend, let alone a best man. He guessed he was trying to please Hermione. Maybe he was a good guy for Hermione after all. Harry had sent the owl back, accepting the invitation. Ginny had talked him into accepting the offer. Harry decided it wouldn't be so bad if Ginny was the maid of honor. Harry had declined the invitation to stay at the manor until the wedding. He told Hermione that he needed more time to work on Ron. All of the Weasley's had been invited to the ceremony. Harry wasn't sure how many of them would actually attend. None of them were too fond of Draco, even though it had been his father that had ruined Mr. Weasley's career. Fred and George weren't happy with Draco either. They were sore from Quidditch, and also from the insults thrown their way. Harry decided that he couldn't really blame them. Hermione had mentioned that Charlie and Bill were going to try to make it. She also said that Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall had replied that they were coming. Harry had laughed and told her that she was the only person he knew who would invite teachers to their wedding.

When Hermione entered her bedroom, the lights were out. _Draco must have been tired._ She thought, moving through the darkness towards the bed. She and Ginny had stayed up late making last minute plans for the wedding. It was past midnight when they had finally called it a night. As Hermione pulled her shirt over her head, arms snaked around her waist. She gasped and turned around, only to find her lips captured by Draco's. When he pulled away, grinning, she couldn't help smiling back.

"Do you ever sleep?"

"I have trouble when you're not lying next to me." He replied, kissing her again. With strong arms, he lifted her carefully and carried her to their bed. The silk sheets were cool on Hermione's skin, but her blood was on fire. Draco ran his hands up and down her arms and straddled her gently.

"Draco!" Hermione protested.

"What's wrong with quadruplets?" He asked, smiling at her.

"Going into labor with quadruplets. I promise we can have some fun after our first child is born. I don't mind four children. I mind four children at one time." He sighed, but rolled off of her. She stood up and got into her pajamas.

"You're such a woman, Hermione."

"God meant for women to bear children because men were too weak to handle it." Hermione teased him, sliding under the covers and snuggling up to him.

"I am many things, Hermione, but I am not weak."

"Really?" She challenged him, kissing his neck softly. He groaned out loud and wrapped his arms around Hermione.

"Well, only when it comes to you." Happier than she had ever been in her entire life, Hermione fell asleep in Draco's arms. When she woke up the next morning to the soft bell signaling breakfast, she was still in his embrace. He stirred and rubbed his eyes.

"Morning already?"

"If you hadn't stayed up late last night to seduce me, you wouldn't be tired." She reminded him, kissing his cheek.

"And if you hadn't been so mean, you'd be tired too." He replied, kissing her lips.

"Yes. I'm horribly mean to you, Draco." Hermione agreed sarcastically, getting out of bed. Draco followed her to their walk in closet.

"You are. If you were nice, you'd let me do this." He pushed her into the closet and shut the door behind him. In moments, his hands were on her back and hers were around his neck. He moved her backwards slowly until her back touched the wall. Then he pressed himself up against her and kissed her with intensified passion. His fingers started to slide down the shorts of her pajamas and his lips moved down to her neck. Her shorts hit the floor and his hands moved up towards her shirt. He lifted her tank top over her head and lowered himself to kiss her breasts. Her legs weakened with every kiss.

"You're supposed to be stopping me, Hermione." He whispered as he returned to kissing her neck. Hermione laughed softly.

"I don't want to be a mean girl." She replied, lifting his face so she could kiss his lips.

"I was only fooling, Hermione. You don't have to do anything you don't want to do." He bent over and picked up her shorts and shirt. She kissed him on the cheek and redressed.

"Let's go have breakfast. Ginny's probably wondering what happened to us."

"Oh that's right. We still have a guest." Draco mused, holding the door open for Hermione. She shot him a look over her shoulder and he smiled sheepishly at her. Ginny was waiting for them when they came downstairs. She smiled when she saw them.

"Good morning." She chirped. "Draco, the food is fabulous." She commented, digging into her scrambled eggs. Draco pulled out the chair for Hermione and nodded to Ginny. Hermione helped herself to some pancakes and looked over at Ginny.

"Did you sleep well?"

"Better than I've slept in my entire life! Water beds and feather pillows...I wish I could live here." Ginny sighed, glancing around the room. Again, Hermione felt a twinge of guilt as she thought about the Burrow.

"So, Ginny, I think your dress is supposed to be coming today. We'll have to make sure it fits all right."

"Yes! I'm so excited, Hermione! When is your dress coming?"

"Soon. I placed a special order, so they said it was going to take a little longer." Hermione replied. She almost smiled just thinking about her wedding dress. She had wanted to make sure that it was perfect, and so did Draco. He had given her a huge pile of galleons and told her to spend all of it and nothing less. She had spent less though, and Draco had reluctantly accepted the left over galleons.

"We'll put it towards our child's Hogwarts fund." Hermione had said, knowing that anything for their child would make Draco agree.

"How many people are coming, Hermione?" Ginny asked.

"Not many. It's most of my family and friends." Hermione replied shortly, trying not to bring up the fact that Draco had no family and very few friends. He stared down at his food at the question, and Ginny seemed to take the hint.

"Muggle or magical location?"

"Muggle. It's not too far from here. That's why my parents are coming to stay for a night or two."

"Hopefully just a night." Draco whispered so only Hermione could hear him. She smiled at him and he winked.

"I wanted all my friends to come, and they don't know that I'm a witch. It's just easier to have the ceremony in a muggle location." Hermione told Ginny. Then she hesitated to ask a nagging question. "Do you know if Ron has decided to come or not?" The table went silent except for the scraping of silver ware. Ginny played with the food on her plate and Draco was watching Hermione carefully. If Weasley ruined Hermione's wedding day, he'd go over to the Weasley house himself and demand that Ron be present at the ceremony. Hermione stared at Ginny nervously, but already she knew what the answer was.

"I don't think he's going to come, Hermione. I'm so sorry." Ginny replied softly. Hermione looked crushed, and pain seared through Draco.

"Maybe he'll come around over the next few days." Draco suggested, trying to make Hermione feel better. She half-heartedly nodded and returned to her breakfast. When they were finished eating, Draco left the two girls to talk and walked to the study. He pulled out some parchment and a quill. Harry cared about Hermione almost as much as Draco did. He would help him get Ron to go. Draco tied the letter to Poseidon and watched his owl fly away. _Maybe Poseidon could come to the wedding._ Draco smirked to himself. His only friend was an owl.

Harry took the letter outside where Ron wouldn't be able to see him read it. If Ron knew that he was getting letters from Draco, he would explode. Unfolding the parchment, Harry glanced over his shoulder once more. All clear.

To Harry Potter,

Hermione is extremely distressed that Ron is refusing to come to her wedding. I know that you want Hermione to be happy as much as I do. Unfortunately, I doubt I would be able to convince Ron to attend. I hope that you will be able to persuade him to come. Send a return owl as soon as you change his mind. I won't accept no for an answer.

Sincerely,

Draco Malfoy

Harry sighed. Ron was being extremely distant. He didn't like to talk to anyone about anything, especially Hermione. And if anyone even started to say Draco Malfoy, he went completely insane. So Draco was wise to send an owl to Harry instead of sending one to Ron. Harry heard a door slam, and he quickly pocketed the note. He turned around and saw Ron walking towards him.

"You don't have to hide it, Harry. I know he's been writing to you." Ron muttered sitting down next to Harry. "I might be depressed, but sadness doesn't make me any less observant." Harry smiled sheepishly at Ron.

"I didn't know how you'd react to it."

"I don't feel anymore."

"So you won't feel anything if you go to Hermione's wedding?" Harry tried, feebly. Ron shot Harry a look.

"The only thing I can feel is pain."

"Well we can change that. Look, Ron, it's just one day you have to face it again. One day. Then, I promise we'll have a hell of summer. We'll have so much fun, you'll forget about her completely." Harry was almost pleading with Ron. He knew his last statement wouldn't hold true for himself. There was no way he'd be able to forget about Hermione. There were too many memories. Apparently Ron felt the same way.

"Forget about her? Are you bloody mad?"

"That's not really what I meant. I meant that we'll go into Diagon Alley for a few days and find you a nice girl. Then you can forget about your feelings for Hermione." Harry amended. Ron didn't seem to be convinced.

"There isn't a girl in the world as beautiful or as smart as Hermione." Ron murmured in a distant tone.

"Well we knew that Hermione was the smartest person in the universe already." Harry tried desperately to lighten the mood, but Ron's dark mood was relentless.

"I thought that she was the smartest person in the universe...but she said yes to that ugly prat Malfoy. Now I can't see her being so clever."

"You know what, Ron? You've never given Malfoy a chance. He could be a nice guy if you were a nice guy to him." Ron's eyes flashed.

"He's got you brainwashed."

"Listen to me, Ron. Forget that he's a Malfoy. Just for a moment, forget that he's a Malfoy. Forget that you've had a grudge against him since your birth. Forget every insult. What do you have?"

"A jerk."

"You're not being open minded. If I can't convince you, then maybe you could see it like this. Hermione did all of that, and she's marrying him. He _has_ to be a decent fellow if she wants to make that kind of commitment." Ron bristled suddenly.

"I'll bet you _anything_ that Malfoy got her brainwashed. He must have slipped something in her drink. I can't see Hermione willingly accepting a relationship with the same prick who called her a mudblood! If she wanted a decent fellow, she should have started her search with me."

"What about our promise, Ron?"

"Harry, that was second year. Besides, I only made you swear that so I could have her all to myself." Harry's mouth fell open. Trying hard not to be mad at Ron for doing such a thing, Harry took a few deep breaths and started his last plea.

"Ron, this letter is from Malfoy. He wants me to know that it is making Hermione miserable to know that you're not coming to her wedding. I don't know about you, mate, but I don't want Hermione to be miserable on what is said to be the happiest day of her life." Ron looked suddenly upset. His eyes went soft with an overwhelming sadness. He ran his hands through his hair as he tried to work through his conflict.

"I never want Hermione to be miserable. That's one reason why I don't want her to marry Malfoy."

"Ron, you've seen them together. They're in love. Hermione is happier than I've ever seen her. You know it, mate. You know that she's going to be happy." A tear streaked down Ron's cheek and Harry placed a comforting hand on his best friends shoulder.

"You're right, Harry. I hate it, but you're right. Leave me alone so I can think." Ron muttered, his voice cracking. Harry felt a sense of triumph at the same time he felt a pang of sympathy for his broken friend. He did as Ron had asked, and left to go write a return letter to Draco.

Draco breathed a sigh of relief when he read Harry's letter. He had to reread it a few times to get past Harry's chicken scratch handwriting.

To Draco Malfoy,

I talked to Ron today, and I believe that I finally got through to him. I haven't gotten verbal confirmation from him at this time, but I expect to receive it any moment now. I will owl you when I get it.

Sincerely,

Harry Potter

Hermione walked into the study as Draco hastily shoved the letter into a desk drawer. She eyed him suspiciously.

"What was that?"

"Nothing." Draco replied quickly. Hermione raised her eyebrows and approached him slowly. Draco wanted to hit himself for sounding so guilty.

"Nothing?" She clarified, massaging his shoulders and gently leaning into his body.

"Just an old letter." Draco struggled to maintain his innocence. Hermione sensed his weakening, and she kissed him softly.

"Can I read it?" She asked, staring him down with her beautiful amber eyes. Draco shifted uncomfortably. He didn't want her to know that he had been trying to get Harry to force Ron to come to her wedding. He knew she wanted him to come if he really wanted to. Draco had known that this would never happen, so he had instructed Harry to work on the stubborn Weasley.

"It's nothing interesting."

"Then why did you hide it from me?" She asked, her face so close to his, the urge to kiss her was growing unbearably strong.

"I-I..." Draco stammered, then trailed off, unable to find anything to say. Hermione reached for the drawer slowly and her fingers closed around the silver knob. Draco grabbed her hand with his, knowing that he should stop her. She glanced up at him. Then without warning, she caught him in a passionate kiss. Instinctively, his arms wound around her waist. Before he knew it, she had opened the drawer and seized the letter.

"Hermione, please don't read it." Draco tried to get the letter from her.

"Why not?"

"It's about your wedding present." Draco finally found a suitable white lie. Hermione smiled and dropped the letter on the desk.

"Why didn't you just say so? Sorry I had to pull the kissing card out, but I was just so curious." She gave him a quick peck on the cheek and left the study. Draco breathed a sigh of relief and quickly stashed the letter in a drawer. Just incase, he turned the key, locking Harry's letter inside.

Hermione slipped into her wedding dress. It was the moment she had been waiting for since she was a flower girl at her aunt's wedding. She had always imagined what kind of dress she would wear at her own wedding. She tried to close her eyes as Ginny helped her zipper up the back, but she kept taking quick peeks.

"Stop looking, Hermione!" Ginny scolded her friend. "But this is simply gorgeous, Hermione. How much did it cost?" Hermione tried not to smudge her makeup as she covered her eyes with her hands so she wouldn't cheat.

"More than enough." Hermione replied, feeling guilty about the Weasley's tiny fortune. Ginny's footsteps were heard crossing the room and returning, holding the veil.

"Crouch a little, Hermione. You're too tall in these heels." Ginny commanded, and Hermione obliged. She felt Ginny placing the white crown on her head and fastening it in place with a simple charm.

"Can I look yet?"

"How about me?" Draco's voice came from the hallway. Ginny shrieked and rushed to the door, slamming it shut quickly.

"Don't you know that its bad luck for the groom to see the bride before the wedding?" Ginny snapped through the closed door. Draco laughed and rattled the doorknob.

"You can wipe my memory afterwards. I've waited long enough to see Hermione in her wedding dress."

"You can wait another two hours." Ginny told him impatiently. "Go wait downstairs for Harry. When he gets here, you two get to the church. Make sure everything is going as planned." Draco grumbled complaints, but did what Ginny said.

"You're so bossy, Ginny." Hermione teased her friend. Ginny laughed.

"I'm just gonna make sure that your wedding is the finest wedding that has ever taken place." Ginny returned to Hermione, gently fixing Hermione's hair.

"So can I see?" Hermione asked, growing more excited with every passing second.

"Hold on..." Ginny carefully straightened the veil. "Okay. You can look." Hermione wasted no time in lowering her hands and opening her eyes.

"Oh my-" She stopped, rendered speechless. Her mouth hung open as she examined every inch of the wedding dress. It looked even better on her than it did on the dummy. The bodice fit snugly around her waist and chest, hugging her curves. The bottom flared out into a billowy white dress of smooth satin. Silver sparkles glistened in her curled hair, and the simple crown veil swept down her back, ending at the floor.

"You look beautiful, Hermione. I can't wait to see the look on Draco's face when he sees you walking down the aisle." Ginny squealed excitedly. Hermione couldn't find her voice to speak. It was all so breathtaking. Not just her dress, but the entire thing. She was getting married to Draco Malfoy in two hours. It sounded just as unbelievable now as it did seven years ago. But it was really happening. She was really wearing her picturesque wedding gown. She was really going to a muggle church in two hours. And she was really going to spend the rest of her life with Draco Malfoy. Ginny, herself, was dressed in an elegant pastel blue. It, too, was made of fine satin, and it missed the ground by an inch. Her head of red was pulled into a sophisticated bun that Hermione had done herself. The girls stared at each other for a moment, soaking in what was happening and what was about to happen. Ginny spoke first.

"You two are going to be together even after death. I can tell by the way you look at each other." She smiled at Hermione. "I hope I get as lucky as you."

"You will, Ginny. You're such a wonderful person. You'll find someone who's equally wonderful, and live happily ever after."

"You really think so, Hermione?"

"Of course. Now let's get to the church. The faster this is over, the faster these butterflies will stop making me nauseous." Hermione grinned, ushering Ginny down the stairs and to the boundary between muggle and magical. The limo was waiting for them there, and Hermione slipped inside. She took a deep breath. _If you're listening, _

"Is he here?" Draco asked Harry, peering at the crowds sitting in the church pews. The entire muggle setting was making him uneasy on top of his wedding day jitters. Harry searched the many faces, but shook his head.

"Not yet."

"But he's coming?" Draco asked, a threatening tone replacing his anxious one. If Ron ruined Hermione's wedding day, Draco would have something to say about it. Something vulgar. Harry sighed.

"For the hundredth time, Ron agreed to come." Draco didn't find much confidence in Harry's tone. It sounded as though Harry was trying to convince himself that Ron would be coming. Draco felt his heart racing as the priest began walking in. His eyes kept darting through the congregation, searching for red hair. Before Draco knew it, it was time for Hermione to enter. He held his breath, waiting impatiently to see his soon-to-be. When he did finally see her, his mouth dropped open slightly. He ran his eyes over her slowly, trying not to miss a stitch. She looked more beautiful than he had ever seen her. The pride in her father's eyes as he walked her down the aisle was incomparable. Draco could say that he never saw that kind of pride in his own father's eyes. But Hermione's father had something to be proud of. Hermione was beautiful, smart, talented, funny, sensitive, and loving. If Draco was her father, he wasn't sure if he'd be able to give her away to anybody. But Hermione's father handed her off to Draco when they reached the alter. Draco smiled at his bride and she smiled back, but he could see that she was nervous. The service was long, but worth everything when Draco finally got to claim her as his. He waited patiently for the priest to read off the vows before watching Hermione intently. She smiled at him, love radiating from her sparkling eyes.

"I do." She stated clearly. And that was all Draco needed to hear. He knew that he was going to accept the vows. It all came down to her acceptance. He had heard stories of brides second guessing their decisions on their wedding days. He quickly thanked Hermione for knowing as surely as he did that they were meant for each other. After he had accepted his own vows, he heard the most glorious words of his life.

"I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride." Draco was only too eager to lift her veil and kiss her, sealing their sacred vows officially. The audience clapped, but Draco didn't hear anything. They smiled at each other and walked down the aisle as husband and wife. That's when he saw it. Out of the corner of his eye, a flash of red. Looking happy in a sad sort of way, Ron was watching them. Draco nudged Hermione gently and nodded in his direction. Hermione caught sight of Ron and smiled so widely, her cheeks hurt. When Draco and Hermione ducked into the limo to get to the reception, they both let out sighs of relief.

"Can we go to Paris now?" Draco teased, kissing her. When he stopped, she laughed.

"You have lipstick on your lips." She grinned. Draco rolled his eyes.

"Who cares? I just married the girl of my dreams."

"You're right. The reception hall is another ten minutes away. How much time do you need to freshen up?"

"Thirty seconds." Draco replied, kissing her quickly. They continued kissing until the limo slowed and parked. Draco found a Kleenex and rubbed off the lipstick.

"Better?" He asked, looking at Hermione.

"Much." She replied, gathering her dress to get out of the limo. "How about me?"

"Gorgeous. As always." Draco reminded her, kissing her cheek. Hermione sighed.

"Come on, let's go. I want to show all of my friends the man I used to complain about nonstop."

"And would you believe this all started with a masquerade?"

I've got an epilogue coming too, so be patient!


	16. Epilogue

Epilogue

"Thomas! Are you up yet?" Hermione called up the stairs. Silence followed, and she ascended the stairs swiftly. Knocking on her son's door, she tried again. "Tom, we're going to be leaving in a few minutes. Come downstairs and eat breakfast." She heard him groan and mumble something in a tired voice. Walking down the hall a little further, Hermione stopped in her daughter's room.

"Elizabeth, do you have everything you need?" The twelve year old girl was like Draco in every way. Her eyes were a glittering gray and her hair was long and pale blonde. Her attitude was the only difference. She was the sweetest little girl. Hermione and Draco both decided that they raised her better than Draco's family had raised him, and that was why. Tom was more of a handful. He was going through his rebellious teenager stage, and he was driving Hermione nuts. He had his father's smile, but everything else came from Hermione. His brown hair, his chocolate brown eyes, and his intelligence. Thomas was going into his fourth year at Hogwarts; Elizabeth was in her second. Both children were accepted into Gryffindor, much to Draco's dismay.

"It's not like everyone who goes through Slytherin is going to become a dirt bag. I turned out all right, didn't I?" He complained when the notices had come.

"Of course you did. Don't worry, sweet heart. They'll do fine where ever they are put." Hermione smiled at her husband. Although they were both thirty-two years of age, they looked mostly similar to how they looked when they were married at eighteen. Elizabeth looked up at her mother and smiled.

"Yes, mummy. I can't wait to get back to Hogwarts." She exclaimed excitedly. "I know people think I'm weird for looking forward to school, but I actually like going. I'm going to try out for the Quidditch team this year."

"Are you?"

"Yeah. I want to be a Chaser."

"Your brother is the Keeper, you know." Hermione reminded her. Elizabeth nodded, vigorously. She took great pride in being Tom's sister. He wasn't quite as fond of her.

"I know! He's excellent! They look like they're having so much fun when they play. I want to do it too!" Elizabeth decided, picking up her heavy trunk and lugging it towards the door.

"Let daddy get that, okay? Just leave it by the door and go wait in the foyer." Hermione kissed her daughter on the forehead and the little blonde skipped off towards the stairs. Draco came up behind Hermione and kissed her cheek.

"They grow up so fast, don't they?"

"So fast. Pretty soon, they're not going to want to come home for Christmas." Draco chuckled.

"Thomas never wanted to come home for the holiday."

"Well I want them here for the holidays. I never realized how long the school year actually was when I was a student there."

"And now that you're a teacher there?"

"I'm old enough to Apparate home in time for you to come back from your position in the Potions Department. It's a much easier commute."

"True. I'm going to go drag Tom out of his bed." Draco kissed her gently before walking into Tom's room. Hermione sighed in content. She had everything she could ever want. Two beautiful children. An adoring husband. A teaching position at Hogwarts. Fourteen years ago, she couldn't even imagine life being this amazing. She watched Draco drag Thomas downstairs to the fire, where they all used Floo Powder to travel to London. Hermione respected her son enough to not ride the train with everyone else, even though she had to get to Hogwarts for the feast. Besides, it meant more alone time with Draco.

I hope you guys liked it! I'd appreciate your reviews on the whole story, and thanks a thousand times over for your reviews!


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